SNP failing patients

SCOTLAND needs a conversation about the state of the NHS and it must start with the SNP – in charge of health for more than a decade now – dropping empty rhetoric about three things.

The first is its ludicrous claim that it is ‘the guardians of the NHS’.

The second is its pointless declaration that things are worse in England and Wales, the third its hypocritical assertion that the private sector has no role the NHS.

As Health Secretary, Shona Robison is promoted way beyond her abilities. She has shown time and again that she is incapable of delivering the reforms the service needs, falling back on empty boasts about how much is being spent.

Throwing ever-larger sums at an unreconstructed NHS delivers nothing in the way of better outcomes for patients.

We see this in Government figures showing the NHS spent £470,000 a day on agency staff last year.

True, the £171.4million overall spend on agency staff in 2016-17 was down £2.8million on the previous year, but the direction of travel is all too clear.

Agency staff will always have a role to play in the NHS but, under the SNP, the service is far too reliant on them.

The clear indication is that staffing levels are insufficient and throwing millions at agencies is a deeply wasteful way to paper over the cracks.

Miles Briggs, Scottish Conservative health spokesman, has a clearer vision of what needs to be done than Miss Robison.

‘The SNP has totally failed to ensure that staffing levels in the NHS are sufficient, and with morale at rock bottom among doctors and nurses, this will only get worse’, he says.

‘It’s time the SNP took responsibility for this situation, gets on with the day job and makes sure our NHS has enough staff to function properly.’