Scottish Parliament – Jan. 18, 2023 – 1

The first question is, that amendment S6M-07538.2, in the name of Humza Yousaf, which seeks to amend motion S6M-07538, in the name of Jackie Baillie, on addressing the crisis in the national health service and social care, be agreed to. Are we agreed? S6M-07538.2: As an amendment to motion S6M-07538 in the name of Jackie Baillie (Addressing the Crisis in the NHS and Social Care), leave out from "is deeply" to end and insert "recognises the unprecedented pressure that NHS and care staff have faced over the winter and thanks them for all their efforts in caring for the people of Scotland at this challenging time;

notes that these are challenges that are being faced across the UK and beyond;

recognises that the triple impact of Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic and the UK Government’s cost of living crisis has exacerbated the pressures faced by the health service;

believes that freedom of movement within Europe would be beneficial to help addressing recruitment challenges, and that the only route to securing that is membership of the European Union;

welcomes that constructive industrial relations in Scotland’s health service mean that Scotland is the only part of the UK not experiencing strike action from health staff this winter;

notes the ongoing £1 billion NHS Recovery Plan, which is supporting new ways of delivering care that are creating additional capacity for inpatients, day case patients and outpatients, including investment to support the four National Treatment Centres (NTC) due to open over 2023;

recognises that the expanded NTC network will provide additional capacity of eight additional orthopaedic theatres, an additional inpatient/day case ward, five endoscopy rooms and two general theatres, initially providing over 12,250 additional procedures, dependent on workforce;

welcomes the Scottish Government’s draft Budget, which included additional investment to increase adult social care wages, and believes that, through the creation of the National Care Service, there is a real opportunity for underpinning fair work in social care and delivering national sectoral bargaining for social care workers."

Original motion(S6M-07538): That the Parliament is deeply concerned about the experiences of patients and staff across Scotland’s NHS;

notes that in recent weeks A&E has recorded the worst ever performance against the 4-hour target, levels of delayed discharge have reached their highest ever and record numbers of people are waiting for appointments, tests and treatment;

considers that this has not been caused by short-term problems, but is the result of 15 years of the Scottish Government failing to tackle systemic issues in Scotland’s health and social care system, and believes that, instead of sticking plaster solutions, Scotland needs an NHS Recovery Plan that is community care-led, focuses on preventative healthcare, properly values social care and delivers £15 per hour for social care staff, and has a fully-funded and sustainable workforce plan for health and care services so that Scotland’s NHS is fit for the 21st century.

Original motion(S6M-07538): That the Parliament is deeply concerned about the experiences of patients and staff across Scotland’s NHS;

notes that in recent weeks A&E has recorded the worst ever performance against the 4-hour target, levels of delayed discharge have reached their highest ever and record numbers of people are waiting for appointments, tests and treatment;

considers that this has not been caused by short-term problems, but is the result of 15 years of the Scottish Government failing to tackle systemic issues in Scotland’s health and social care system, and believes that, instead of sticking plaster solutions, Scotland needs an NHS Recovery Plan that is community care-led, focuses on preventative healthcare, properly values social care and delivers £15 per hour for social care staff, and has a fully-funded and sustainable workforce plan for health and care services so that Scotland’s NHS is fit for the 21st century.