The announcement today that the design and planning of the St Mary’s Hospital redevelopment in Paddington will be able to continue is excellent news for my constituents and across London. Thanks to a new tranche of funding from the New Hospital Programme, this is a vote of confidence in this scheme which will transform the hospital. It is a significant step forward after years of uncertainty for St Mary’s. This funding will see £19.4m released, which will enable progress to be made towards receiving planning consent for a new hospital, within a redeveloped life sciences campus in Paddington.  This funding is anticipated to be part of a total of around £50 million, in order to complete this phase

Since my election, and more recently since the New Hospitals Programme funding, I have worked hard to secure the future of the new hospital and am now working hard alongside my neighbouring MP, Joe Powell, to bring us together with Westminster City Council and Imperial College Healthcare in a funding taskforce with a view to confirm construction dates and bring forward a timeline that delivers certainty for residents of my constituency, and all Londoners who utilise St Mary’s services. I look forward to joining this taskforce to deliver change for my residents.

I will continue to deliver on this issue, not only for my constituents, but for all those across London who were disappointed to see the initial funding delayed. This newly released funding marks a substantial step towards receiving the certainty our community needs for the future.