• Health Minister Simeon Brown is expected to confirm the Dunedin Hospital project’s future amid cost concerns. 
• The Government capped funding at $1.9b, sparking a 35,000-strong protest. 
• Proposed downsizing or staged development has faced a public outcry. 

Dunedin’s new hospital will be built on the old Cadbury factory site despite several “construction challenges”, confirmed today by Health Minister Simeon Brown. 

The Government has also released details of the hospital’s scale with Brown stating it will offer 351 beds, 58 emergency department spaces, 20 short-stay surgical beds and 22 theatres. 

It’s the latest development in a project marred by delays and cost blowouts. Tens of thousands of Dunedin residents protested as the Government decided to stick to the new hospital’s price tag of $1.9 billion when more recent estimates put the cost at $3b. 

Brown, who became Health Minister less than two weeks ago, today said the Government agreed to build the inpatient building of the new hospital at the site of the former Cadbury factory as was originally planned under the previous Labour Government. 

“The former Cadbury factory site purchased by the previous government has numerous construction challenges such as contamination, flood risk, and access issues,” he said. 

“However, we are confident that these can be overcome, and it’s clear that using this site to build a new hospital would be far less disruptive than constructing a new complex at the existing hospital.” 

He claimed the hospital would be “futureproofed for growth” as he outlined the scale of the new facility: 

• 351 beds, with capacity to expand to 404 beds over time 
• 20 short-stay surgical beds, a new model of care 
• 22 theatres, with capacity to expand to 24 theatres over time 
• 41 same day beds to provide greater capacity for timely access to specialist and outpatient procedures 
• 58 ED spaces, including a short-stay unit and specialised emergency psychiatric care 
• 20 imaging units for CT, MRI and Xray procedures, with 4 additional spaces available for future imaging advancement. 

“The new Dunedin Hospital will be able to adapt and expand in years to come to ensure it responds to changing needs,” he said. 

The Dunedin Hospital inpatient building site. Photo / Ben Tomsett 

Work on the inpatient building, on the former Cadbury factory site, was paused last year following an announcement by former health minister Dr Shane Reti and Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop. 

The outpatient building remains on track to open in 2026. 

Concerns about potential cutbacks to the hospital’s design led to a massive public outcry, culminating in an estimated 35,000 people marching through Dunedin in protest. 

Since last year’s announcement, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has maintained that the hospital will be built for $1.9b, but not at the higher estimated cost of $3b. 

An estimated 35,000 people marched against the Government's proposed hospital cuts in Dunedin last year. Photo / Ben Tomsett 

The Government is considering two options to rein in spending: reducing the size of the planned inpatient building while retaining some clinical services in the old hospital, or a staged development that includes refurbishing the current ward tower alongside the construction of a smaller clinical services building. 

Both proposals have drawn criticism for their potential impact on the quality of care and hospital operations. 

The Dunedin City Council, along with the grassroots “Save Our Southern Hospital” campaign, has been pushing back against any cuts. 

Clinicians and hospital staff have warned that further reductions would create an inefficient, fragmented facility that could compromise patient safety. 

Ben Tomsett is a multimedia journalist for the New Zealand Herald, based in Dunedin.