Construction on the hospital is now set to start

Last week, Gwynedd council planners told the local NHS trust that they preferred a slate roof to a metal one on the new hospital at Tremadog.

But the trust said a slate roof would mean a redesign and would cost more for it to construct.

Dwyfor councillors have now said they will allow the metal roof. The trust said it was delighted.

The North West Wales NHS trust had warned a slate roof could add �400,000 to building costs, and delay construction work indefinitely.

I was worried that we were letting ourselves into a situation we would be facing many houses wanting a similar sort of roof Councillor June Jones

In a statement, it said was "delighted that the potential planning difficulties that could have delayed the start of building have been resolved".

"The council's decision means the trust can continue with plans to begin preparation and ecology work on the site in March," it continued.

Councillor E Selwyn Griffiths, who has campaigned for the hospital for 15 years, said he was "very pleased" at the decision.

"I hope now we have seen the last problem crossed now," he said.

He added that, over the years, he had been worried that the hospital would never be built.

"As we went along, there was always a hiccup coming...I hope this is the last hiccup now and I feel 99.9% confident now that it will come through."

Councillor June Jones said she still had concerns about the metal roof. "I was worried that we were letting ourselves into a situation we would be facing many houses wanting a similar sort of roof," she said.

The 30-bed hospital will be built in Tremadog

"I have also had concerns about the slate having been the main roofing material in this area for hundreds of years and proving to be a good roofing material, whereas steel is fairly new and there may be problems. "[I] am hoping the cost in 20-25 years will not be coming back on this community again."

She said she was disappointed the health trust had not thought of using slate in the first place.

Council planners had argued for slate because the site is in a landscape conservation area and near to the national park.

The hospital is currently called North Meirionnydd or East Dwyfor Hospital, and the trust had chosen a building design with a lower pitched-roof to reduce the visual impact.

A spokesman said that, if the local authority had insisted on slate, it would have had to go back to the Welsh assembly for extra money.

Architects Nightingales Associates, of Cardiff, have worked on the �13.5m project for 18 months.