News on whether the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) will be rebuilt is not expected until May, officials have confirmed.

The 42-year-old hospital in King’s Lynn was built from Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) and has some 470 temporary props preventing its roof from collapsing.

The QEH was not included in a list of new-builds unveiled by the government in 2020, but hopes to be one of eight further replacements announced this year.

Back in February, the hospital’s managers were told a longlist for those eight hospitals would be "shared within weeks".

But at a Tuesday (April 5) meeting of the hospital’s board of directors, deputy chief executive Laura Skaife-Knight said the announcement was now not expected until May, due to the UK being in a ‘purdah’ period ahead of the May 5 local elections.

During ‘purdah’, government announcements are limited in case they influence elections.

Ms Skaife-Knight added: “Coupled with that, there is a piece of work going on nationally, to inform the Treasury around the future of RAAC hospitals, that I think is also critical.”

“So I think coupled with purdah, that national report will inform both the longlist and the future of RAAC hospitals.”