THE Christie hospital faces losing £7.5m invested in a failed Icelandic bank - threatening plans for two new radiotherapy centres.
The hospital trust invested £1m of NHS cash and £6.5m of charity money in the Kaupthing, Singer and Friedlander bank.
Hospital bosses say they have taken legal advice and with the help of the Financial Services Authority, they are now negotiating to get the money returned from KSF - which was taken over by the Icelandic government this week.
More than 100 councils - including Bolton - as well as police forces, fire services and transport authorities, have deposits running into millions of pounds each in the crisis-hit institutions.
A fierce diplomatic row has broken out with Iceland and Gordon Brown has accused the country of `completely unacceptable' behaviour by not recompensing savers in failed Icelandic banks.
Mr Brown said he was freezing assets of Icelandic companies in Britain as a result.
Downing Street confirmed that a Treasury delegation - which included officials from the Bank of England and the FSA - was in the Icelandic capital Reykjavik for urgent talks aimed at resolving the crisis.
Managers of the world- renowned Christie in Withington recently announced plans to build two £17m radiotherapy treatment centres in Oldham and Salford, but the plans are dependent on cash from their charity - called Christie's.
The money invested in the Icelandic bank was due to be used for developing services and research.
The network of treatment units would mean no one in the region would have to travel more than 45 minutes for treatment five days a week.
The hospital is one of two nationally to invest in Icelandic banks, the other is the Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust.
A hospital spokeswoman said: "The money has been put aside to fund developments and research for cancer patients over the next five years."
Up to 70 people a day would be treated by specialist Christie staff at each of the new centres based at Oldham General and Salford Royal, known as Hope, from January 2011.
Christie chief executive Caroline Shaw said: "I want to reassure everybody that our patients will continue to be treated as normal and we are working hard to ensure that this money is returned."
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The Seeker, Eccles (10/10/2008 at 21:35)
-Soothsayer+ (10/10/2008 at 21:46)
If the Bank of Iceland (inverted commas) have failed to pay up to our charities ... then maybe we should look at who made this possible.
What or who let our money that has been gained through marathons, sky jumps and donations ... been allowed to put this money into Icelandic accounts.
I am very angry!
dave pickup (10/10/2008 at 22:02)
Ian Ashton (11/10/2008 at 01:14)
The benefits are twofold.
It helps the artist and when the artist dies you can relish the windfall.
S P In exile, Tameside (11/10/2008 at 02:24)
Why has Christies got £7.5m in a bank that is a lot of money to have sitting in a vault, why hasn’t this money not been invested in patient care? It is thought that altogether there is about £250m that the charities have lost to this bank and this is only one bank so how much is lying in other banks, why is the money not being used for what it has been donated for.?
The charities excuse for having this large amount of money is it seems to be a universal answer, we were just going to use it in the next week or two.
The amount of money that the charities have salted away in the banks seriously leaves me to think about making any donation in the future.
Beaufort (11/10/2008 at 10:16)
What for? They hardly needed the money because they have millions stashed away. How much is there in other accounts?
Never again will they get a penny of money from me.
Fran M (Permissum Populus Constituo) (11/10/2008 at 11:43)
The radiotherapy units at Oldham and Salford should be funded from NHS funds not charitable donations.
I think this episode exposes the contempt with which fundraisers and the general public are held by Ivory Tower residents.
I am reconsidering my monthly donation.
john smith (11/10/2008 at 12:14)
Icelandic companies arent the ones holding onto the money of these charities and local councils who have lost money.
Under Iceland's financial regulations, the government is supposed to pay up to £16,000 compensation per account so even if they do agree to pay that a long way off 7.5m
ebble, manchester (11/10/2008 at 23:47)
The public sector has no need to speculate with our cash - it is funded generously enough to do without such tactics.
scaryfairy (12/10/2008 at 19:12)
Gaz M (12/10/2008 at 22:20)
Why do some people seem to implicitly hate the public sector?
The Seeker, Eccles (12/10/2008 at 22:53)
Mind you the bloated, smug arrogance of Gordon Brown's government hasn't helped.