A HOSPITAL chief was told it was "a little misleading" to state Dorset was getting five new hospitals.

Last month the Daily Echo confirmed that, contrary to repeated remarks of Prime Minister Boris Johnson, there were no new hospitals opening in the county as part of a major investment in the NHS.

The Government's New Hospitals Programme involves significant funding for 40 hospital projects.

While some of these schemes are for complete new builds, all of the money in Dorset is earmarked for sites which are already home to hospitals.

During Monday's meeting of BCP Council's health and adult social care overview and scrutiny committee, chair Cllr Jackie Edwards said: "I find the term new hospitals a little misleading and I think some of the public do as well because it is almost like we are going to get five new hospitals, when actually it is probably hospital improvements rather than new hospitals."

Councillor Edwards, Conservative, told Steve Killen, New Hospital Programme director for Dorset, that "I expect you have come across this".

Mr Killen, who provided the committee with an update on the New Hospitals Programme, said "it has been said before", adding that the investment scheme had previously been called the Hospital Improvement Programme or the Health Infrastructure Programme.

He said: "It did get re-badged as the New Hospital Programme and within the 40 there are a number of new hospitals but within the Dorset system, while there are new wings and new aspects to that, it is refurbs and improvements to our existing, so I think your comments are noted."

Dorset's allocated funding from the New Hospitals Programme was earmarked to carry out projects at Royal Bournemouth Hospital, Christchurch Hospital, Poole Hospital, Dorset County Hospital and St Ann's Hospital.

Mr Killen told the committee that the county's strategic outline case was approved in August last year and work was now progressing on outline business cases ahead of submission around June.

The Dorset hospital projects are in cohort two of four in the programme, meaning they can be delivered by 2024.

This was "good news" for the county as it meant the money was not far into the future, Mr Killen said.

He said the Dorset approach was one of the few to include acute, community and mental health schemes.