Work on the site was temporarily halted in January when cracks were found in two concrete transfer beams

Now Aidan Kehoe ,chief executive at Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals, said they “are planning to move by Summer 2018.”

Carillion is expected to now hand the building over next February compared to an original handover date of March 2017.

A Carillion spokesperson said: “We are disappointed that the opening of the new Royal Liverpool Hospital has been delayed.

“The construction of such a building on a brownfield city centre location is a very complex process and we have encountered some issues which have unfortunately led to a delay in the handover date to the Trust.

“We continue to work closely with the Trust to ensure that we handover the building as soon as possible in order for the transition into the new hospital to start.”