NHS Lothian facing £31 million shortfall

NHS Lothian would need £31 million to return services to the levels provided last year, MSPS have been told.

The funding shortfall facing the health board was revealed in evidence to Holyrood’s health committee.

Deputy chief executive Jim Crombie said the board had “characterised a gap in our ability and our capacity to deliver against the access targets”.

He said: “We’ve been clear to the board, we’ve been clear to government that there is a significant element of funding that would be required to allow us to recover.

“Part of the request from the Scottish Government was to present what they characterise as an operational plan… for 2018-19 and in that we’ve characterised all of our intelligence around demand, all of our intelligence around efficiency, productivity and maximising the use of our resource.

“But even doing all that we’ve characterised a gap and we’ve characterised the quantum of funding that would be required to allow NHS Lothian to return to the levels of performance in terms of patients waiting over 12 weeks at March 2017.”

Pressed by committee convener Lewis Macdonald on the figure, he added: “To return NHS Lothian to the position of March 2017 is £31m, circa.”

The issue was raised in the Holyrood chamber by Labour health spokesman Anas Sarwar, who said it was a further example of “mismanagement” and renewed his calls for health secretary Shona Robison to stand down.