Thirteen years since proposals were first mooted, the go-ahead for Gwent’s delayed super-hospital has been welcomed as “better late than never” by a local MP.
Monmouth MP David Davies said confirmation that a 462-bed Specialist and Critical Care Centre (SCCC) will be built at Llanfrechfa Grange near Cwmbran was long overdue.
He recently called for clarity over the future of the project after fearing it had been “kicked into the long grass”.
But Health Secretary Vaughan Gething yesterday announced £350m of investment and gave the green light for construction to start on site in early 2017.
The full business case for the SCCC, which will serve a 600,000 population in Gwent and south Powys, took the Welsh Government more than a year to approve.
Part of a radical plan to modernise health services run by Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, the state-of-the-art hospital is expected to open to patients in the autumn of 2021.
“I’m delighted we are finally able to look forward to a new hospital,” said Mr Davies.
“After a decade of delays, I was concerned this project would never see the light of day.
“My priority now is to work closely with health officials to ensure improved services benefit patients, staff and communities across Monmouthshire and south east Wales.”
Existing acute services at the Royal Gwent and St Woolos hospitals in Newport and Abergavenny’s Nevill Hall Hospital are likely to see changes when the SCCC opens, the Welsh Government said.