A REVIEW has been launched by the Comptroller and Auditor General to scrutinise the ‘significant amount of money’ that has been spent on healthcare projects in the Island without a new hospital materialising.
Lynn Pamment wants to follow up on a report by her predecessor, Karen McConnell, published in 2017, that looked at decision-making around the site-selection process for a new hospital.
Launching the latest work, Mrs Pamment said: ‘It is now over ten years since the States Assembly required the Council of Ministers to bring forward proposals for investment in hospital services, including detailed plans for a new hospital.’
She added: ‘In that time a significant amount of public money has been spent on various hospital projects with no construction having yet commenced on a new hospital.’
Mrs Pamment said that the review formed phase one of her planned review of major and strategic projects, including capital projects and will evaluate the extent to which previous C&AG recommendations have been adopted in:
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The Our Hospital Project.
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The review of the Our Hospital Project.
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The proposed arrangements for the New Healthcare Facilities programme.
‘In addition, I will document the expenditure by the States of Jersey and the assets acquired by the States of Jersey since 2012 with respect to new hospital facilities,’ she said.
In the latest twist in the long-running saga, Infrastructure Minister Tom Binet presented more details of the government’s multi-site approach at the end of February, under the title ‘Delivering New Healthcare Facilities’, which has replaced the previously used Future Hospital and Our Hospital labels.
Work to develop the scheme will continue for the rest of 2023, Deputy Binet said, using £51 million in funding from the current Government Plan. This includes £28.5m for the development of the ‘revised’ multi-site scheme, which replaces the single-site Our Hospital project from the previous government.
From July, Mrs Pamment will also begin a review into the Electronic Patient Record system within Health and Community Services.
Her review will evaluate the design and operation of the EPR project against the best-practice framework developed by the UK National Audit Office.
