There will not be a public inquiry into the planning application for Jersey's new acute hospital at Overdale.

Jersey's Environment Minister Steve Luce has made the decision, which means consent for the £710 million pound facility will be decided by the department and planning committee in line with usual process.

A planning application was submitted in September 2024, revealing space for 60 more beds and 343 new parking spaces. 

A public inquiry was previously held on 4 April 2022 relating to the hospital site.

This resulted in planning permission being granted on 17 May 2022 for the previous iteration of the hospital, which was later abandoned. 

Plans for the Overdale hospital site

A statement from Deputy Steve Luce reads: 

'I have decided not to call a Public Inquiry for the new Acute Hospital planning application at the Overdale Hospital site (Ref: P/2024/1025). 

'As Islanders may be aware, a Public Inquiry was held in April 2022, after which planning permission was granted for a new hospital at Overdale.

'At the time, the Planning Inspector’s report to the Minister for the Environment confirmed the proposal accorded in principle with the Bridging Island Plan Spatial Strategy, and that the site was the right site for the Hospital development as confirmed in Policy CI3 of the Plan, approved by the States Assembly. 

'The built form of the newly proposed Acute Hospital will be constructed wholly within the confines of the existing Overdale site, and results in the retention of Westmount Road and the Jersey Bowls Club, while Fields H1550 and H1552 will be utilised for surface car parking'.

The statement concluded:

'The application will be determined in accordance with the usual Departmental and Planning Committee processes and procedures.'

Health Minister Tom Binet

Health Minister Tom Binet tells us that he hopes the decision will speed up the hospital build process:

"It's an indication of the fact that the scheme is obviously a good scheme and shouldn't be too controversial. 

"Hopefully that will help to expedite it as well and should mean we will get it completed that much quicker."

He previously told us he wanted a decision by the committee to be made before Christmas.

The Minister says this will now likely be in the new year: 

"It's probably going to be in the first couple of weeks of January. We were hopeful that it might be before Christmas, but if we're being realistic, it will be mid January.

"That's fine. That in itself won't delay things because we've got the Christmas break. Everything we're doing is ongoing so nothing actually stops."

Ministers hope the acute hospital build will be completed by 2028.