Ministers ‘behind the curve’ on rollout
MORE lives will be lost and the misery of Covid prolonged if SNP Ministers do not radically improve planning for mass vaccination, experts have warned.
The Scottish Government is ‘behind the curve’ on plans to immunise people, a report claims.
And it calls into question Health Secretary Jeane Freeman’s vow to vaccinate a million vulnerable Scots by the end of next month.
Any failure will also mean current restrictions are in place for longer, further devastating business, jobs and the wider economy.
The report by the think-tank Our Scottish Future was written by former World Health Organisation official Evie Robertson and based on interviews with UK health experts.
It also calls on the Government to appoint a Vaccines Minister – something Nicola Sturgeon has refused to do – to ensure a smooth rollout. The report also warns that better communication is needed between the UK and Scottish Governments, more resources for health boards needed, greater recruitment of people to deliver the vaccine and a media campaign to encourage take-up.
It says: ‘Health boards will require substantial support from the Scottish Government to avoid the same problems that occurred with the flu vaccine, in a rollout four times the size, requiring multiple doses.
‘Faster and more efficient vaccination will inevitably save lives, making this process all the more critical.’
It concludes: ‘The Scottish Government looks to be behind the curve against strategic and operational requirements, known about for months. Vaccinating Scotland remains an unprecedented challenge. There is still a valuable month left to put the right strategy, resources and operations in place to maximise the speed at which the vaccine can be dispensed.
‘Greater urgency is required to plan the rollout, and likely implications, than is being seen today.’
The findings were backed by health experts and politicians.
Professor Hugh Pennington, expert in microbiology at Aberdeen University, said: ‘This authoritative and detailed analysis demonstrates the urgent need for Scotland and the UK to collaborate to the full now that the rollout of life-saving vaccines is imminent.’
Scots Tory health spokesman Donald Cameron said: ‘Alarm bells are ringing about the lack of clarity provided so far.
‘Concerns about staff recruitment, freezers and vaccination centres are going unanswered and as a result, there is clearly a danger that we see a repeat of the flu jab shambles from earlier this year.’
Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard said: ‘I remain concerned that lessons have not been learned from the recent failures of the flu vaccination programme.’
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie said: ‘Ministers kept their cards close to their chest over care home testing, testing of students and the set-up of Test and Protect. The result was that each of these systems had major flaws which could have been avoided.’
A Scottish Government spokesman insisted it was not ‘behind the curve’, adding: ‘All four nations will begin their Covid vaccination programme on the same day. In Scotland, we have also outlined the programme for care home residents will start on December 14.’
‘Danger we see repeat of the flu jab shambles’