More than £127million worth of historic debt at Gloucestershire’s two main hospitals has been written off by the Government to help them cope with the coronavirus panemdic.

Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has been rid of its historic debt, totalling £127,860,000, to also spend money on long-term infrastructure and maintain the services it provides at the moment.

The trust runs Gloucestershire Royal Hospital and Cheltenham General Hospital.

The package is part the Government’s announcement that more than £13billion of NHS debt was scrapped on April 1, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said.

Mr Hancock said: “As we tackle this crisis, nobody in our health service should be distracted by their hospital’s past finances.

“The £13.4 billion debt write off will wipe the slate clean and allow NHS hospitals to plan for the future and invest in vital services.

“I remain committed to providing the NHS with whatever it needs to tackle coronavirus, and the changes to the funding model will give the NHS immediate financial certainty to plan and deliver their emergency response.”

NHS chief executive, Sir Simon Stevens, said: “We’ve advocated for and support this pragmatic move which will put NHS hospitals, mental health and community services in a stronger position – not just to respond to the immediate challenges of the global coronavirus pandemic, but also in the years ahead to deliver widespread improvements set out in our NHS Long Term Plan.”

Under the new rules set out in a letter to all NHS trusts, should hospitals need extra cash this will be given with equity, rather than needing to borrow from the government and repay a loan.

ENDS