Council backs new £250m women's and children's hospital for Milton Keynes

The plan document, called “Ambitious for a Green Recovery,” has been published this week by the Labour council.

It promises to counteract the Covid-19 recession with a 'green revolution' involving around £2bn in investment.

This will include the council investing cash to establish Milton Keynes as a centre for green jobs, with a new Mass Transit System at the heart of a new transport infrastructure.

Other infrastructure projects lined up include £400m for the city centre university, a £200m redevelopment of Saxon Court in CMK, hundreds of new council and genuinely affordable homes and the £250m Women’s and Children’s Hospital.

MK hospital is applying for the money to build the four-storey building on the same site as the existing hospital, which needs to grow because of the planned increase in the city’s population over the coming years.

Maternity services are currently “maxed out” at 4,000 births per year but the new unit would be able to cope with 6,000 births a year.

The council has also pledged a £3m support package to help MK people and businesses who have suffered through the Covid-19 crisis.

This funding will be targeted at supporting green and well-paid jobs, and it is the largest single economic support package yet to be announced by any council in the U.K.

The council will spend £1m on helping businesses, with funding allocated to help people learn new skills and retrain. It will also fund specific support to help women and young people in employment, as evidence shows both groups have been disproportionately impacted by the Covid-19 crisis. The support for women impacted by Covid-19 is the first scheme of its type in England.

But, despite all this investment, there could still be a bumpy ride ahead for MK, admits the Labour group.

A spokesman said: "The Covid-19 Strategic Recovery Framework highlights how the council intends to help the city through what is predicted to be a long and deep recession. The document highlights how Milton Keynes may be in for a much bumpier ride than in previous recessions."

Milton Keynes Council leader Pete Marland said: “The Covid-19 Crisis has changed so much. While people want to get back to normal, it’s clear they don’t want to go back to the broken record of a decade of austerity. We need a recovery that focuses on green jobs while making sure we support people who are in need. Our plan is for greener, stronger communities.”

He added: “Our plan is ambitious, but we can deliver it if we all pull in the same direction. It will be challenging and involve some difficult choices, but they are choices that must be made.

"We can’t go back to how things were. We need to support businesses that pay well and do the right thing for the communities they serve. We need cheaper housing. We need to tackle inequality and rising child poverty. We need to support those most impacted by Covid-19 such as women and young people. Our plan sets out how we can achieve that.”

Pete said the next few years were likely to be a "very tough" battle.

"Our £2bn green plan for the city sets out how we intend to make Milton Keynes the green centre of investment for the recovery. Additionally, the £3m we are promising to spend this year is the largest package by any council in the U.K to support people and businesses through this difficult time.

"We have so much going for us as a place and this plan will put us in pole position, whilst also ensuring we come out of this crisis a fairer and more equal place.”