The Opposition
Anas Sarwar would set about tackling the NHS crisis and easing the soaring cost of living on his first day if elected first minister.
The Scottish Labour leader said NHS waiting times and the cost of living crisis squeezing household budgets to breaking point must be addressed first.
He said: “The in-tray for the next first minister is piling up to the sky. The relentless focus has to be on the twin crises facing our nation – the NHS crisis and the cost of living crisis.
“We have to urgently get our NHS waiting lists down and then we have to do the hard work to reshape, remodel and rebuild our NHS so that it is fit – 23 years too late – for the 21st Century and prepared for the 22nd Century as well.
“For the cost of living crisis, we are going to do everything we can to help bring people’s bills down and create economic growth in this country so we can strengthen the economy, create better-paid jobs and increase our tax take to allow us to do all the important things we want to do around social policy and get our country facing outwards rather than the inward-facing government we’ve had now in Scotland for 15 years.”
Sarwar said the next first minister would likely spend much of their first day appointing their new Cabinet. He added: “I’m less interested in which personality carries on the decline in any individual portfolio. What I want to know is where is the plan to rebuild every single Scottish institution, which is all the weaker after 16 years of SNP government.
“Let’s get ourselves back into the education international league tables and redouble our efforts to make Scottish education the best in the world.
“Let’s confront the drug crisis that makes Scotland the drugs death capital of Europe and let’s rebuild our criminal justice system so everyone can feel safe and secure.”
Despite the SNP calling for a general election during the Conservative leadership turmoil last year, the three leadership candidates have said they do not favour an immediate Holyrood election.
But Sarwar said one must be called after the new first minister takes office. He explained: “We need an election right now so we can let the Scottish people decide who’s got the right priorities and the right plan to take Scotland into the future.”