Scotland's health boards receive £230 million in bailout loans.

Last year, seven Scottish health boards were granted 230 million in emergency loans from the Scottish government, despite record levels of NHS funding. This information emerged from Audit Scotlands latest annual review of NHS finances.

Analysis shows that over the past six years, health boards in Scotland have received just over 500 million in bailout loans, with only 7 million repaid. Audit Scotland cautioned that the NHS remains "financially unsustainable," while the Scottish government emphasized progress in transforming healthcare services.

The report highlighted persistent challenges seen in previous years, including rising patient demand, pressures in emergency care, and missed targets for waiting times. Small decreases in waiting times were noted as positive developments, but overall performance has not improved in line with government promises. Productivity remains below pre-pandemic levels, and seven of Scotlands 14 regional health boards failed to balance their budgets last year.

Total health spending for 2024/25 reached 20.6 billion, a 24.9% real-term increase over the past decade. Most of these funds are allocated to health boards, yet seven authorities still could not achieve financial breakeven.

Audit Scotland reported that an unprecedented 230 million in loan funding was needed in 2024/25. These soft loans, intended to be repaid once boards return to financial balance, add to a total of 503 million distributed since 2019/20. Only NHS Tayside has repaid any of its loans, totaling 7 million.

Some boards exceeded their intended loan limits. For instance, NHS Grampian was initially capped at 15.3 million but ultimately received 65.2 million.

Challenges Behind the Financial Strain

Health boards face difficulties meeting efficiency savings targets set by the government, which amounted to over 657 million last year. Failure to achieve these targets is a major reason for requesting bailout loans. Rising staffing costs, now nearly 60% of NHS Scotlands budget, further strain finances. The NHS staffing bill increased from 6.6 billion in 2017/18 to 11.5 billion last year, employing over 160,000 full-time equivalent staff, up more than 20,000 since 2019.

Audit Scotland highlighted issues in board management. Six NHS boards are under formal government oversight due to poor performance in leadership and financial management. Reports on NHS Ayrshire and Arran and NHS Grampian indicated that financial recovery is unlikely without significant organizational redesign.

Despite financial and operational struggles, some leaders in these boards received outstanding performance evaluations in recent years.

Changes to Support for Struggling Boards

The Scottish government has ended the system of bailout loans, calling it unsustainable and unfair to boards that maintained balanced budgets, such as NHS Lothian and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. Instead, struggling boards will receive "deficit support funding," though Audit Scotland criticized the lack of clarity around the new arrangement.

Audit Scotland emphasized that efficiency and reform are crucial to sustaining the NHS. Auditor General Stephen Boyle stressed the need for "detailed, measurable actions" to enable meaningful change, warning that long waiting times will remain a significant challenge through 2026.

Health Secretary Neil Gray highlighted improvements, noting record numbers of hip and knee operations, reductions in waits over 52 weeks for five consecutive months, and the highest level of performed operations since early 2020. Plans to strengthen the NHS include expanding community-based care, investing 531 million in general practice over three years, and increasing Hospital at Home capacity to 2,000 beds by the end of 2026.

Healthcare professionals report severe pressure on emergency units, with insufficient beds, chairs, and cubicles, leading to delays in patient care and ambulance turnaround times. Despite growing investment, performance gaps persist, raising concerns about the sustainability of improvements.

Audit Scotland and other experts emphasize that tough decisions are needed regarding what the NHS can realistically deliver within current funding and resource constraints.

Author: Benjamin Carter