§ 30. Mr. Rentonasked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he will announce firm dates for the commencement and completion of the construction of the new district general hospital in Mid-Sussex.
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§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeThe South-West Thames regional health authority plans to begin work on the Mid- Sussex district general hospital in 1984–85. I have had discussions about this project with the chairman of the regional health authority, Mr. Tony Driver, and the chairman of the district health authority, Mr. Martyn Long, and we have agreed in principle on improved management arrangements for this scheme which should shorten the planning design and construction periods compared with the general past experience of NHS hospital building. However the time scale for the development depends not only on building considerations but also on the relative priorities of other major schemes within the South-West Thames regional health authority's capital programme. We are therefore still discussing the proposed time scale with the regional health authority.