NHS waiting list pledge should have been fulfilled by September says Labour

A recent government pledge to eradicate waits of more than 12 months for NHS treatment “should have been fulfilled by September”, Scottish Labour have said.

Public Health Scotland figures show that in September a total of 100,968 people had been waiting more than 12 months for either a new outpatient appointment, inpatient treatment or day-case treatment.

Labour pointed out that this was an increase of 39% on the figure of 72,405 in July 2022 – the same month the government made a pledge to eradicate waits of more than a year by September 2024.

Finance Secretary Shona Robison renewed the pledge in the recent Budget, saying additional funding would mean that by March 2026 nobody would be waiting more than 12 months for a new outpatient appointment, inpatient treatment or day-case treatment.

Labour also said private inpatient and daycare admissions in Scotland reached their “highest ever reported” levels in the second quarter of 2024, with the party’s health spokesperson Jackie Ballie saying people were now “raiding their savings” to get the treatment they need.

“Boasting to Scots that they will ‘only’ have to wait a year for treatment paid for by their own taxes reveals the deteriorating state of the NHS under the SNP,” she said.

“But this is a promise that should have been fulfilled by September this year – instead, since the SNP first made its waiting-list pledge, the number of Scots waiting more than a year has soared.

“The reality is Scotland now has a two-tier health system, where thousands of Scots who can no longer bear the pain are raiding their savings to get the treatment they need.

“The SNP must make the most of its windfall from the UK Labour government and reduce waiting times to a timescale that patients can bear.

“Scottish Labour will prioritise frontline NHS services so Scots who seek treatment get the help they need.”

Health Secretary Neil Gray said: “We know many still face unacceptably long waits for treatment and we are currently investing £30 million to drive targeted action across specialities like orthopaedics to address the longest delays.

“This will enable approximately 12,000 additional outpatient appointments, 12,000 inpatient and day-case procedures, and over 40,000 diagnostic procedures.

“Our 2025-26 Budget provides record funding of £21 billion for health and social care – with NHS boards receiving an additional £2 billion to deliver key frontline services.

“We want to make progress on improving our NHS, but to do that, Parliament must back our Budget to unlock investment to drive long-term and lasting improvements.”

Published: 09/12/2024 by Radio NewsHub