Tom Morrison

I thank my hon. Friend for bringing that idea forward. Yes, absolutely; I will talk later about how a new site in Stockport could alleviate the stress on Stepping Hill and save the Government a lot of money. Stockport NHS foundation trust is clear that the £134 million would be over and above any Government funding already allocated. The trust simply cannot make the efficiency savings being asked of it when it is firefighting each day. I want to tell the House what this looks like and how this firefighting impacts the day-to-day lives of the staff and the patients they look after. On our visit, nurses told me of the huge issues they face regarding infection control. There are genuine concerns that the outdated and inefficient building makes infection control even harder. Beds are too close to each other and people are unable to move around within a safe distance of each other. Parts of the site predate the NHS and, as such, the corridors are so small that two wheelchairs or trolleys cannot go past each other. Shockingly, the hospital has only around 20% of the side rooms it needs to isolate infectious patients, and in the electrocardiography zone there are no handwashing facilities. The nurses told me that during covid, they had to create massive one-way systems through the wards, making care and movement even more complex. That was a logistical challenge at a time when the NHS was already being tested to breaking point. The building itself is also dangerous. On the visit, I was shown the relentless water damage and leaks across the estate. When it rains, staff race around the hospital putting out buckets to catch the water dripping through the ceiling, sometimes on to vital equipment. Ward and shower rooms have become completely unusable because of leaks, which have further reduced capacity. I have seen wards where sewage comes up through the drains, meaning that nurses have to clean up rather than look after the patients they should be tending to. The glass windows in the cardiology unit are at a huge risk of falling out, posing a serious safety risk. Clay pipework from 1905 is still in use and leaking, meaning that escaping steam is rotting the floors beneath. Some floors are now physically sinking. As I entered the building, I saw that the hospital’s café was closed for that very reason—I could actually see where the floor was beginning to slope down. Scaffolding is literally holding up the glass ceiling in the main entrance— a worrying welcome for patients entering the building.