In the past two years, over 3,000 faults related to mold and water leaks have been reported at Scotland’s £1 billion superhospital, according to an investigation by The Mail on Sunday.
Documents reveal a troubling series of issues at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH), including leaking ceilings, black mold, malfunctioning air conditioning, contaminated water, and collapsing roof tiles.
These persistent problems result in a new report roughly every five hours, despite repeated assurances from First Minister John Swinney that the Glasgow hospital remains safe.
The hospital’s extensive ‘estate logs,’ obtained through Freedom of Information requests, have surfaced shortly after reports that health board leaders plan to rebuild a problematic bone marrow transplant ward.
Earlier this year, two patients contracted fungal infections on Ward 4B, leading to the closure of five rooms due to concerns over mold and water leaks.
Both QEUH and the Royal Hospital for Children are under public scrutiny following infections of rare bugs among dozens of patients, primarily young cancer patients, with some cases tragically resulting in death.
Among the patients who lost their lives were grandmother Gail Armstrong, 73, schoolgirl Milly Main, 10, childminder Tony Dynes, 63, and government adviser Andrew Slorance, 49.
Their deaths are currently being probed by prosecutors.
The QEUH hospital has been plagued with problems since it opened a decade ago
Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said the hospital was still clearly facing challenges
Scottish Tory health spokesman Sandesh Gulhane said ministers were ‘serially dishonest’ about the issues at the site, while Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie called the findings ‘deeply worrying’.
She said: ‘This is a campus which cost £842 million, with taxpayers picking up a bill of over £78 million on additional investigation and repair work.
‘Despite this huge expense, it’s clear the QEUH still has significant challenges, despite John Swinney having insisted the campus is safe.’
According to the new data, there have been more than 2,500 reports of water and mould problems at the QEUH, and around 750 at the RHC in the last two years.
They include 159 reports about a complete loss of water in rooms or wards, nine mentioning dirty water leaking in, 100 complaints about mould and 341 warnings of leaking ceilings.
Staff have complained dozens of times about water leaks from air conditioning units, which have previously been cited by experts as an infection risk for particularly vulnerable patients.
In April 2024, staff asked for urgent repairs after ‘yellow water’ began leaking ‘from the air vent in patient’s room’.
Last September, a sick child had to be moved as the air conditioning was leaking into their room, and three months later there was another report of ‘air con leaking dirty water’.
In January, QEUH staff asked for an urgent repair to the air conditioning, which they said was leaking ‘above patients’ beds’.
Other leaks were also reported, including one which stated there were ‘multiple large bulges in the ceiling’ in the QEUH, and another which said there was
a ‘water leak on ceiling of a patient room’ in the RHC.
On eight separate occasions, staff reported the ceiling in some wards and corridors had ‘collapsed’ with water leaking into the building.
Mould and smells were also logged for urgent repair. In September 2025, staff raised the fact there was ‘mould behind a dialysis port’, which is used by people suffering from kidney failure.
A year earlier there had been reports of leaking behind a dialysis port. In November 2024, RHC staff highlighted a ‘sewage smell coming from the sink’ and in July 2025 they again complained of a ‘strong smell from the tap water’.
A utility room in Ward 4C was found to have a mouldy sink, while flooring in various wards had mould growing underneath and loose linoleum needing replaced.
In Ward 4B, which treats bone marrow transplant patients, three urgent repairs were requested in one of the rooms in November 2024, and another urgent repair was logged for an adjacent room seven months later.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) is suing contractor Multiplex for £73 million over defects with the QEUH, arguing it did ‘not receive the building it asked or paid for’.
As revealed by the MoS, two patients had to be treated for fungal infections in Ward 4B in February and a number of rooms were closed due to reports of water leaks and mould.
Despite knowing patients were infected, SNP leader Mr Swinney and his Health Secretary, Neil Gray, failed to tell the public and insisted the site was ‘safe’.
Dr Gulhane said: ‘This astonishing list of incidents confirms yet again the SNP have been serially dishonest about the problems continuing to plague Scotland’s largest hospital. John Swinney reassured the public everything was fine.
‘We now know he failed to tell Scots about serious issues. We must finally have full transparency from the SNP about this appalling scandal.’
An NHSGGC spokesman said: ‘The vast majority of these incidents relate to routine maintenance. We have robust systems in place to encourage staff to quickly report environmental issues.
‘Patient safety remains at the heart of everything we do.’
