Health Secretary confirms Portsmouth NHS Debt write-off.

Dear Penny,

I am writing to you on the £13.4 billion of hospital trust debt we announced last week that we are writing off, and to provide you with a trust-by-trust breakdown in the table attached. This announcement is part of the ongoing support measures we are providing our incredible NHS as it leads our national effort against Coronavirus.

In essence, this announcement means that we are writing off any historic finance that NHS providers have drawn down to cover day-to-day financial gaps or to fund urgent infrastructure investment.

As you can see in the attached table, this decisive action will benefit each of the trusts by ensuring they can continue to provide world-class care without the burden of legacy debt. Valuable cash that would otherwise have been needed to repay past liabilities will be freed up to maintain vital services and self-finance more capital investment, helping us take a major step in delivering our longer-term commitment to support NHS providers to become financially sustainable.

Lastly, I’d like to reiterate my thanks for all that you are doing to help with our response to the Coronavirus pandemic. I strongly welcome the constructive tone colleagues have struck during the Coronavirus outbreak with Government, and I am grateful for the leadership so many of you are showing in communities across the country as we come together in the national effort to defeat this virus.

Yours ever,

MATT HANCOCK MP

Secretary of State for Health and Social Care.

Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust

Total (£'000) - £125,165

Revenue Debt (£'000) £122,365

Capital Debt (£'000) £2,800