Hospitals delayed by Carillion collapse as costs blow out - NAO

(Sharecast News) - The cost of building two new hospitals that are still uncompleted after the collapse of government contractor Carillion, the National Audit Office said on Friday
.The Royal Liverpool Hospital was now expected to open at least five years late at a total cost of more than £1bn, compared with an original estimate of £746m, while the Midland Metropolitan Hospital in Smethwick could cost almost £1bn - £300m over budget.

The NAO said the private sector would carry most of the cost increases.

The Royal Liverpool hospital has been forced to spend around £293m to fix shoddy work by Carillion, including cracks in structural beams that meant the new contractor had to strip out three floors to put in steel reinforcing and concrete.

The hospitals were funded through the now widely discredited private finance initiative, used heavily by both Labour and Conservative administrations to keep debt off government books.

Carillion went into liquidation in January 2018 and was one of the UK's biggest corporate failures as it went under with debts of more than £7bn and the loss of 3,00o jobs. Carillion Plc