Ruth Davidson attacked over free prescription policy U-turn
RUTH Davidson has performed a shock U-turn after abandoning Scottish Tory opposition to free NHS prescriptions – a policy the party has attacked for years. The Scottish Tory manifesto will now commit to free prescriptions despite the party opposing the flagship SNP policy for the last decade. Davidson now describes the policy as “sound”, although she previously attacked free prescriptions, which were introduced by Alex Salmond after the SNP win in 2007, as a “publicly-funded bribe” to win independence.
Davidson’s U-turn now puts her in opposition to her party’s policy in England and Wales which is to retain charging. The policy change was attacked by political rivals as evidence of Tory “opportunism”.
Last night, Salmond described the shift as a “Damascene conversion” by Davidson, adding that the Tories were now trying to “mimic the success of the SNP” in a desperate bid to get MPs elected in Scotland.
Salmond, who is standing for re-election in Gordon, said: “The SNP’s flagship free prescriptions policy has been an overwhelming success and is one of the reasons that people continue to put their trust in the SNP after 10 years in government. Ruth Davidson used to describe free prescriptions as a ‘publicly-funded bribe’ – but this Damascene conversion shows even the Tories can reluctantly recognise it is the SNP that pursues the right policies for Scotland.”
Davidson’s U-turn puts her at odds with Theresa May, whose government is responsible for charges of £8.60 per item south of the Border. She announced the policy as part of the General Election campaign for Westminster, even though prescriptions is a policy area devolved to Holyrood which holds powers over health.
Scottish Secretary David Mundell, who serves in May’s Cabinet, will now be standing on the policy of retaining free prescriptions, despite the Prime Minister’s opposition.
The Scottish Tories said the change in stance was because medication is playing a growing role as an alternative to hospital care. However, Davidson admitted the shift was also motivated by the “large amount of support” for free prescriptions in Scotland. She said it was aimed at boosting the party’s support in Scotland and positioning the Tories as an alternative party of government at Holyrood.
Speaking to journalists at Holyrood, she said: “Last year, we got a result that a lot of people didn’t expect. My challenge for the next few years is to turn us into a credible alternative government in Scotland and this is part of that. There is large amount of support for this policy and we recognise that.” She added: “So we think that it’s a sound one [policy].”
Davidson confirmed that she would appoint a health advisory board in the coming weeks to examine how best to make the policy shift. Her volte-face was savaged as opportunism leading to claims from Scottish Labour health spokesman Anas Sarwar that she “will do and say anything” to get Tory MPs elected in Scotland in the General Election on June 8.
Sarwar added: ”This is an embarrassing U-turn by the Tories. All this humiliating shift shows is that once again the Tories simply can’t be trusted on the NHS.”
Health spokesman for the Scottish Greens, Alison Johnstone, echoing the criticism, added: “The Tories will have people scratching their heads on this one, wondering what the real reasons are for the U-turn, welcome as it is. Everyone knows the Tories at Westminster are desperate to privatise the NHS down south and you only have to look at their recent treatment of junior doctors to see how they view NHS staff.”
Davidson claimed the policy was one of a number of areas where the Scottish Tories had a different stance to the party at Westminster. “In the 2015 General Election campaign there were differences between the UK party manifesto and the Scottish manifesto, on both devolved and reserved issues, on things like the right to buy. I would expect in the next couple of weeks that when the manifestos come out there will be divergences there.”
Scottish Tory health spokesman Donald Cameron said the party had decided to back free NHS prescriptions partly because of the popularity of the policy. However, he insisted it was more about adapting to changes in the way the NHS delivers care. The MSP said: “There is no doubt at all that people in Scotland value the idea of free prescriptions. We have listened to them, and changed our policy.”
Topic of the week: local elections – the reckoning
YOUR leader should be required reading for all patriotic Scots (The local elections and the canary in the coal mine, Editorial, May 7). The Tories are indeed toxic, and their impending landslide in Greater England (which now includes swathes of the Borders and northeast Scotland) will prove – ironically – to spell the end of the Union, at last.
David Cameron’s unnecessary referendum and Theresa May’s bungling of Brexit is leading the “United” Kingdom into petty chauvinism and economic disaster. Trump’s USA and the bits of the old Empire with a Union flag still incorporated into theirs will not ride to Britain’s rescue for old times’ sake.
The SNP will convincingly win the election in Scotland – with between 45 and 50 seats is my guess. Once the dust settles, and the full horror of the prospect of 20-plus years of Anglo-centric rule (who imagines that a Tory Westminster will look kindly on an “ungrateful” Scotland’s needs?) sinks in, I believe a great number of Scots will realise there is no alternative to independence.
If Theresa May – or her successor, after the men in grey suits call – refuses to “grant” a constitutionally-binding referendum, then the Scottish Government should press on with a consultative one. If the great opportunities and benefits of running our own country are clearly explained, even the “black-tops” of the cruder “red-tops” and media will surely not prevent the Scots this time from choosing the road less travelled. David Roche Perth LABOUR won 32 council seats in Glasgow against the SNP’s 39, yet Paul Hutcheon pronounced the party “dead on arrival” (Here’s how Labour lost control of Glasgow, The battle for Scotland, May 7).
Yes, the SNP won the election, but they did not destroy the Labour Party in Scotland as many of their supporters promised to do, encouraged by the rhetoric (uncritically reported) of their leaders. Their efforts did, however, drive some supporters of the Union into the arms of the Conservative Party, all set to boost the fortunes of the appalling Theresa May. Well done, Nicola! Alison Gray Glasgow IN claiming that the case for a second Scottish referendum is “sunk”, the Scottish Conservatives appear to be indulging in some wishful thinking. The Tories obsessed about the constitution all through the local government election campaign but the indisputable fact is that the SNP won the election, gaining more votes and more seats than any other party, which confirms that the case for a second independence referendum remains buoyant. Ruth Marr Stirling