The Royal Liverpool NHS Trust said that with a detailed plan to carry out remedial works in place it was on track to submit a business case next month for extra funding to complete the hospital.

A meeting of the NHS Trust board yesterday was warned that the works would be complex due to the advanced nature of the building and would take time to complete.

The structural problems with existing transfer beams are the biggest challenge facing Laing O’Rourke, which is in place to complete Carillion’s stalled hospital project.

The firm’s plan involves strengthening existing beams and reducing the loads that are causing structural issues.

Board papers also reveal that the Trust is procuring 141 works packages covering everything from structural works to taps.

Laing O’Rourke is set to submit a final programme for the hospital shortly allowing the trust to finalise its business case.

This will go before the Trust board next month before going to NHS Improvement/England for final approval.

More than £3m had to be spent on essential maintenance costs on the new Royal last year.

This included flushing the water system to providing power and heating in order to ensure future safety and maintenance of systems, fixtures and finishes.

The Trust said: “Whilst these costs are significant, the cost of replacing degraded systems could be far higher and funding is in place for this ongoing essential maintenance.”