KEVII cost is £3m. to look after 17 patients

IT COSTS £810,000 more to run the King Edward VII hospital each year than was first revealed.

The new figures take the expense of running the hospital, which is now understood to have just 17 patients, to just under £3m.

Health and Social Services released more figures in response to Deputy Mike Hadley's written questions – he has been campaigning for the hospital to close and for patients to be cared for in the private sector. But the overall running cost, released by the department, did not include the commercial value of the building, which Deputy Hadley said would be around £1.3m. per year.

'The KEVII site is extensive and valuable, the buildings being insured for £18 million – this cost was not included. If the buildings and land were not occupied by HSSD the site could be sold or used as social housing or otherwise used by the States,' he said.

'At a commercial rate of about 7% HSSD must be costing the States about £1.3 million. Thus if the KEVII was closed the States would save about £4m.'