Ministers have denied reports a catalogue of problems at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital site could cost as much as £50 million to repair.
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman insisted the figure is “inaccurate” but said she could not provide her own estimate as the health board is still working through the cost.
It comes after an unannounced inspection by Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) found there are more than 300 outstanding repairs at the beleaguered complex – with no evidence of a plan to complete them.
Meanwhile, the Herald on Sunday revealed NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s estates and facilities manager is understood to have told the corporate management team in January that it could cost as much as £50m to rectify the issues at the site.
Read more: £50m repair bill for Glasgow's troubled Queen Elizabeth University hospital
Asked about the issue at Holyrood, Ms Freeman told MSPs: “Reports that the hospital requires repairs of around £50m are inaccurate and the board does not recognise this figure as it has made clear in public statements.”
She said the board is investing £2.75m to sort out problems with the water system and ventilation, with no other significant investment required at the Queen Elizabeth or the Royal Hospital for Children.
However, she added: “The Queen Elizabeth University Hospital is part of the wider Queen Elizabeth campus, which includes older buildings, and as with all estates maintenance is an ongoing process and the board continues to work through the required maintenance in the older parts of the campus.”
HIS was asked to inspect the hospital complex following the deaths of a 10-year-old boy and 73-year-old woman who had contracted an infection linked to pigeon droppings.
Ms Freeman said the 300 outstanding repairs ranged from “what would be basic, small-scale maintenance which should be part and parcel of a normal programme of ongoing maintenance, everything from fixing taps to lightbulbs, through to jobs that are about ensuring infection prevention and control”.
Read more: Family find out mother is victim of Mucor infection at QEUH by reading online
She added: “The board has produced a detailed plan in response to the inspectorate’s unannounced inspection, which I commissioned.”
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde previously admitted to the Herald on Sunday that the older campus buildings required "significant investment".
The HIS report, which was released on Friday, also highlighted staff shortages.
Ms Freeman said there was a “higher than acceptable level of unfilled domestic posts”, as well as a “much, much higher than acceptable level of sickness absence” among domestic and maintenance staff.
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