Swinney should ‘hang head in shame’ over A&E wait times, say Tories
First Minister John Swinney should “hang his head in shame”, the Conservatives said as figures show almost one third of people wait longer than four hours in accident and emergency.
Public Health Scotland released its weekly figures on Tuesday, showing 68.2% of A&E attendances in the week to July 6 were seen and subsequently admitted or discharged within the four-hour target time.
The figure continues a trend of small increases, rising from 67.8% the previous week.
The Scottish Government aims to ensure 95% of people are seen within four hours.
In the latest week, 941 people waited longer than 12 hours in Scotland’s emergency departments – the lowest since the week of September 3 – and 2,472 waited more than eight hours.
Scottish Tory health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said: “John Swinney should hang his head in shame.
“It’s the height of summer, yet nearly a third of patients are still waiting over four hours to be seen at A&E.
“Our NHS is buckling under pressure that should have eased months ago – because one SNP Health Secretary after another has run it into the ground.
“These aren’t just statistics, they represent real lives lost to delays that could and should have been avoided.”
Scottish Labour deputy leader Dame Jackie Baillie said: “Lives are still being put at risk by the chaos in A&E – this cannot be allowed to become the new normal.
“Every single week thousands of Scots are facing dangerously long waits for urgent care, despite the tireless efforts of dedicated NHS staff.
“It has been years since the SNP last met its A&E targets and it is still falling badly short – there is absolutely no room for complacency.”
“The latest weekly figures show continued improvement in performance, both compared to the previous week and the same period in 2024,” he added.
“In addition, 12-hour waits have decreased by 16.4% compared to this time last year.
“This is welcome progress. However, I know that some people are still waiting too long for treatment and I am determined to drive further improvement.
“We are investing £200 million to reduce waiting times, improve hospital flow, and minimise delayed discharges.
“Our recently announced expansion of the Hospital at Home initiative to 2,000 beds by the end of 2026 will ensure more people can receive first class NHS care in the comfort of their own homes and not have to travel to a hospital where it isn’t required.”
And Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said: “Staff are stuck working under pressure cooker conditions and patients are stuck having to wait hours for vital care.
“We are now on our fourth different health secretary since this SNP Government last met the A&E waiting time target. Successive SNP appointees have come and gone without making a dent.
“If you’re frustrated with the SNP making you wait to access the NHS, vote Scottish Liberal Democrats on your peach regional ballot and back a party which will put in the hard graft to fix our NHS.”