NHS on ‘amber alert’ in Scotland – is the same true for trust in Salmond?

With yet another question about the honesty of the SNP, just how accountable, really, is Alex Salmond?

 

Scotland’s Auditor General Caroline Gardiner has announced the NHS is on ‘amber alert’ – and today, Scottish Labour leader Johann Lamont put this charge to Alex Salmond at First Minister’s Questions.

Gardiner says that despite boards within the NHS being on budget, this was only achieved through reallocation of money from board to board. She warned this facilitated short-term thinking, which should be discouraged for the benefit of the longer-term economic picture.

Scottish Labour have warned the SNP are not dealing with harsh economic facts in their drive towards independence and are ignoring the further cuts that are necessary and delaying them until after the independence referendum.

Shadow health minister, Jackie Baillie, has raised concerns about policy regarding the NHS, saying the SNP are refusing to face up to the facts – 2,500 fewer nurses and record numbers of complaints.

Salmond also, in the past, denied Labour’s allegations of cutting funding to colleges, cuts which have now been announced by the Auditor General to the tune of 24% in real terms, twice.

This comes amidst yet more concerns about the SNP and how open they are; Salmond’s chequered past regarding legal advice on EU membership has yet again come to haunt him.

Aileen McHarg from the University of Strathclyde and Alan Trench of the University of Edinburgh have both expressed doubt that the meeting between the UK and Scottish governments – the “Edinburgh Agreement” – constitutes a basis for legal consultation. Scottish Labour says these incidents are the latest in a long line that proves trust in the SNP, and the party’s credibility, has been damaged.

If we are to have a genuinely democratic referendum on Scottish independence, we must have open and accountable economic and policy debates and not let certain people’s political motivation override this principle.

14 Responses to “NHS on ‘amber alert’ in Scotland – is the same true for trust in Salmond?”

  1. cynicalhighlander

    Boost for Scottish Government as Lord Advocate vindicates EU legal advice stance

    As to who is trustwothy!

    As to Johann Lamont who prefers to replacing WMD rather than helping the poorest in society has lied previously in falsifying a fictitious rape case on a previous FMQs and is not trusted by an ever increasing number of Scots.

  2. John Ruddy

    Nice to see you prefer to attempt to score points than any concern about the state of the NHS or the cuts to our colleges.

  3. TristanPriceWilliams

    The NHS in Scotland is a great deal better off than in England. At least money can be moved around to where it is needed. let us not forget that the UK give us less and less money every year to pay for more and more. In an independent Scotland we could divert some of the money Britain wastes on pretending to be important, on actually looking after Scottish citizens. John Ruddy, was not the whole point of this post scoring points against the government. I hardly think we can blame Cynical Highlander for wanting to score some back. Particularly when it is true. Lamont has used false information for FMQ, knowingly or not.

  4. donwmcleish

    “despite boards within the NHS being on budget, this was only achieved through allocation of money from board to board”

    And the point is what, exactly? This policy sounds like sensible management of a very important national resource.

    I seem to recall from my membership days that the Labour Party believed in a NATIONAL Health Service, not the fractured and resource-wasting entity that the Tories have turned it into, for the benefit of profiteers.

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