Member

There is “fair and sustainable” on the one hand and “tough choices” on the other. We somehow apply them to NHS hospitals. How on earth can we do this when we know that our NHS is under severe financial pressures despite the Government’s additional funding? I am not a member of a hospital trust board—thank goodness, because the responsibility would be huge—but, according to the Minister’s list, there are 290 NHS hospitals, the rateable value of which would ensure that they were in this higher multiplier bracket under the Bill. For these 290 hospitals, which represent the majority of our large, full-service hospitals, their average rateable value is £2.6 million. If I have done my sums right, this means that, currently, they are having to pay £1.25 million in non-domestic rates; and that, if the full additional multiplier is applied to NHS hospitals, they will have to pay another £250,000. To me, that is foolish to a degree. The average hospital would currently have to be paying something like £1.5 million in business rates—and that is the average; the bigger London hospitals will be required to pay much more because of their location.