£1.2bn Barts scheme finally gets green light

Health secretary Patricia Hewitt has finally given the go-ahead for work to start on the £1.2bn redevelopment of St Bartholomew's and the Royal London hospitals in London.

A start to the PFI contract, awarded to the Skanska/Innisfree pairing, was halted in December following an 11th hour review of the project.

Despite the delays being estimated at costing £500,000 a day, the minister insisted she wanted to ensure value-for-money would be achieved on the project.

However, the announcement has been followed by speculation that the new plans could include a reduction in the number of bed spaces being built.