Following the formal announcement of the Government’s health infrastructure plan in Parliament yesterday, Sir Mike Penning welcomed the £400million spending for west Hertfordshire but only if it is spent on a new state-of-the-art hospital in a location easily accessible to all three major towns in the area. Speaking in the Commons Chamber Sir Mike said: “Now £400 million is welcome, but not if we are going to chuck it into Watford Hospital, which is a Victorian hospital that took all the work from Hemel Hempstead Hospital when Labour closed our acute hospital. Hemel Hempstead is the largest town in Hertfordshire. We welcome the money, but we would like a new hospital where we could look after St Albans, Hitchin and Harpenden, Watford and Hemel Hempstead in the 21st century—we do not want to plough this into a Victorian hospital.” In reply the Minister confirmed that “No formal decision has been made on the detail.” And urged Sir Mike to continue to make the case for a new site to the hospital trust and to Ministers. Speaking afterwards, Sir Mike said: “I spoke with the Secretary of State at the weekend and, as the Minister said in the Chamber yesterday, he has offered a meeting in which we can put our case. I will follow this up so that we can put forward the detailed case ably put together by the New Hospital Campaign which clearly demonstrates that a new site option is not only possible but by far the better option for all the people of west Hertfordshire.”