ALMOST 400 local jobs have been created so far in the mammoth project to build Glasgow's £842million superhospital.

Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the South Glasgow Hospital Campus had resulted in 390 new posts for people in and around the city.

The figures were released as the Scottish Government announced a further £20m for infrastructure projects up to 2030.

Ms Sturgeon said investment in schools, hospitals, roads and other infrastructure would support 40,000 jobs across Scotland this year.

The campus, at Shieldhall in Govan, will have adult, maternity and childrens' hospitals on one site and a state-of-the-art laboratory.

It is the biggest single investment in NHS Scotland's history and will be among the most modern facilities in the world.

Ms Sturgeon visited the hospital's newly completed £75m laboratory and said the project was making "good progress".

She said: "This Government is determined to invest in Scotland's infrastructure – our schools, roads and hospitals –both to stimulate growth in the short-term and lay foundations for long-term success.

"Today's updated plan demonstrates exactly how we will do that, despite substantial and ill-thought-through cuts in our capital budget from Westminster of some 26%.

"We are on course to spend £3.1billion on projects in communities across Scotland in 2012/13, supporting 40,000 jobs.

"That is good news for our economy and our construction industry, which we know bene- fits from the certainty and vision of the future the Infrastructure Investment Plan provides."

The new hospital should be completed in February 2015.

The children's hospital is expected to be operational first with the adult one slightly later as it involves the transfer of services from the Western Infirmary, the Southern General and the Victoria Infirmary.

Work on the new hospitals, being carried out by Brookfield Construction, is already under way following the comple- tion of the £75m laboratory.

The adult hospital will have 1109 beds and 30 operating theatres with a floor area of 166,000sq m - equivalent to 24 football pitches.

Every patient in the general wards will have a single room with ensuite facilities.

The new children's hospital will have 256 beds.

It will have a part-covered roof garden where young patients can enjoy a range of activities in the fresh air, including their own stage where they can put on theatrical productions.

caroline.wilson@eveningtimes.co.uk