§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the total cost of external consultancies associated with the specification of the proposed PH contract at the Western General hospital trust, Edinburgh, and from which budgets these costs were met; what was the estimated cost of the proposed contract at the time the decision was taken not to proceed with the contract; and what is the estimated cost of the publicly financed development at the Western general hospital Edinburgh announced on 23 June. [12750]
§ Mr. Galbraith[holding answer 27 October 1997]The Western General Hospital NHS Trust incurred around £1.6 million in fees for design, financial and legal advice in connection with the proposed PH project. The costs were met by the trust from its own resources including non-recurring revenue grants from the Scottish Office. Much of the expenditure incurred would be required under both PH and publicly funded routes.
In June, the estimated capital value of the PH project was £70 million. The estimated cost of the smaller publicly funded development is £40 million excluding VAT.