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King's Lynn: Absent health minister replaced with cardboard figure

Jill Bennett/BBC Cardboard cut-out of Lord Markham with protestersJill Bennett/BBC
Campaigners are calling for Lord Markham, portfolio holder for hospital builds, to visit the QEH when the roof is in danger of collapse

Campaigners calling for the replacement of a propped-up hospital have held a "red carpet" protest complete with a cardboard figure of a health minister.

The Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) in King's Lynn, Norfolk, is supported in 100 places by about 3,000 props.

However, the hospital is not listed on the government rebuild programme, headed by health minister Lord Markham.

Protesters said the stunt was "a cheeky invitation" for the minister to see the state of the building for himself.

Lord Markham has been approached for comment.

Although health secretaries and ministers have visited the QEH in the past, Lord Markham has not.

The hospital opened in 1980, one of seven built using a material called reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), which the NHS estate has promised to remove by 2035.

Shaun Whitmore/BBC Wooden props supporting a roofShaun Whitmore/BBC
The roof of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King's Lynn is being supported by steel and wooden props

Large parts of the building, including theatre blocks, are supported by props and every public body in west Norfolk has been backing the campaign to get the hospital replaced.

The most recent support came from South West Norfolk MP and former premier, Liz Truss.

Lord Markham heads up the hospital rebuild programme, but so far the Queen Elizabeth Hospital has not made it on to the list for government funding.

One of the campaigners, Liberal Democrat county councillor Rob Colwell, said: "Lord Markham was appointed in September last year as the latest minister who will apparently make the decision on any rebuild.

"He hasn't been to the QEH, he hasn't seen the struts, he hasn't met the patients, doctors or nurses that are all having to put up with this," he said.

"We want him to see the seriousness of the situation and, regardless of the horrendous delays in a decision, he will be very welcome.

"We will roll out the red carpet out for him."

QEH hospital roof help up by props
Earlier this year there were 131 props in use across the hospital, including in critical care and maternity wards

A recent Freedom of Information (FOI) request by the Liberal Democrats ranked the QEH the worst in the country for hospitals with "dangerous roofs at risk of sudden collapse".

It would cost £554m over the next 10 years to make repairs to the existing hospital building, the QEH's chief executive said in April.

The government previously said an announcement on 40 new hospitals was imminent.

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