Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on releasing funds that would allow progress on new hospital provision for the eight Pathfinder Trusts.

We have regular discussions with HM Treasury regarding the delivery of the New Hospitals Programme. Since its establishment, we have worked with trusts to establish how each scheme can maximise efficiencies enabled by the programme. The full individual funding allocations for schemes are confirmed once the respective Full Business Cases have been reviewed and agreed, including with HM Treasury.