Health campaigners have asked where the money to rebuild Watford General is going to come from following another damning report into the state of local NHS services and the resignation of the man in the charge - reports the Watford Observer.
The new report comes just days after health chief David Law resigned as chief executive of West Herts Hospitals NHS Trust.
Mr Law, the man who was in charge of Watford General for three years, quit his £120,000-a-year post last Friday evening after a report, by the Healthcare Commission, slammed the state of local health services.
The trust has been dogged by poor hospital standards and huge debts and last week was given a double "weak" rating when it came to the quality of service it provided - putting it in the bottom 5% in the country.
This week, another official health report, this time by the Audit Commission, found the trust remains £11 million in debt - one of just ten trusts across the country more than £10 million in the red.
The annual review graded trusts on a range of financial measures, including value for money and financial management.
The trust was given a "one", the lowest possible grade, meaning its finances are "inadequate".
Health campaigner Jean Brett has questioned whether the trust can now attract investment to pay for the £300million redevelopment of Watford General.
She said: "With problems like those highlighted in the Audit Commission, do they really think anybody is going to put forward the money for that trust as part of a PFI development?
"This is one more nail in the coffin for the PFI."
Watford MP Claire Ward said: "I have indicated to the Strategic Health Authority that I will not support the appointment of any chief executive who does not give full support to Watford Health Campus. This project is essential to the future development of the NHS in my constituency."
However the hypocritical Ms Ward herself is not giving all the support she could to the potential development, given she intends to quietly approve a £7bn increase in funding to the audit-failing EU when the European Communities (Finance) Bill comes before Parliament for approval.
Ms Ward can hardly claim to be standing up for local public services if she plans to support the waste of vast sums of public money on an organisation that hasn't been able to explain how the "majority" of its budget has been spent for thirteen years running.
Waste in one area of public spending - especially of sums as large as £7bn - inevitably means consequences elsewhere. If Ms Ward supports the EC (Finance) Bill, only she will be to blame for insufficient health services in Watford.
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