PATIENTS were today assured that Blackburn's £96million 'super hospital' would not be affected by recent hitches.

And Balfour Beatty, the firm providing the cash for the scheme, denied that it has been the victim of any cost-cutting.

Blackburn with Darwen Council officials have told planning councillors to refuse amended plans for the Queen's Park Hospital site, which were submitted in January, when they are presented to them next week.

They are unhappy with the proposals for an aluminium roof and the design of certain parts of the building, particularly the exterior in Haslingden Road.

And, along with planning experts from the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE), they labelled the changes "unimaginative and unacceptable".

But Balfour Beatty today said it expects to resolve any problems quickly.

A spokeswoman said: "The construction team are now in discussion with the local authority regarding the proposed colour and finish of the roof, and the finalisation of certain elevations, as part of the work to discharge conditions attached to the planning approval. This is the normal process and is not due to any suggestion of cost-cutting.

"The preferred bid for Queen's Park Hospital in Blackburn has always included the use of an aluminium roof and detailed planning permission was approved on that basis in July 2002.

"We are looking forward to reaching financial close on this project in the near future and working closely with the local authority and the health trust to build this hospital for the local community."

Officers have rejected a request to use a reflective aluminium roof instead of a duller material which would blend in more with the grey slate used on other local properties.

The delay is the second in the space of four weeks after a financial wrangle has held up work on the project, which will take three years to complete. Last month a behind-the-scenes wrangle between the hospital trust's partner Balfour Beatty, which is putting up the cash for the public-private project, and an agency in the City, delayed the issue of a bond required to bring in investors.

But the firm insisted: "We continue to be in dialogue with the rating agency Moodys and we expect that an investment grade rating of the bond will be approved shortly."

The development is taking place under the Government's Private Finance Initiative where the builders will pay the capital costs and the trust will lease it over 35 years.

The new hospital will merge services onto one site and includes a new accident and emergency department to deal with 70,000 admissions a year, an extra 377 in-patient beds, and new intensive care and high-dependency units.