This recent report on NHS Scotland is highly critical

The latest official report confirms that Scotlands NHS has not advanced in line with the promises made by the Scottish Government, even though both funding and staffing levels have increased.

According to a report released today by the Auditor General for Scotland, the government allocated over 20 billion to health services in 2024-25, representing 37.5% of Scotlands total budget. The NHS now employs more than 160,000 people, a rise of 14.3% since 2019, adding 20,000 new positions. In real terms, spending has grown by 3 billion since 2019 and is 25% higher than it was ten years ago.

Despite this growth in resources, Stephen Boyle, the Auditor General, delivered a stark assessment. He stated that even with increased investment, the NHS in Scotland remains unsustainable, and eliminating long waiting times by spring 2026 will be extremely difficult. This comes after the Scottish Government pledged that no patient would wait more than a year to see a specialist or begin treatment by next March.

The report also highlights that NHS boards required an unprecedented level of loan funding, totaling 230 millionthe highest ever recordeddespite the rise in overall funding. NHS Ayrshire and Arran, which received the largest share of loans and brokerage support (129.9 million between 2019 and 2025), was recently instructed by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman to cover private surgery costs in London for a patient who had been unreasonably discharged.

Furthermore, Ayrshire and Arran was one of only two boards for which the Auditor General issued a section 22 report, citing concerns about financial stability, service quality, and leadership. Last year, the board engaged an external consultancy for just under 1 million to improve efficiency and workforce management, but the report suggests the results have been limited.

Author: Caleb Jennings