Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 11 November 2020
I welcome the opportunity to speak in this important debate.
As many people have noted in recent weeks and months, the pressure on the NHS this winter will be unprecedented. On top of the regular challenges that are faced over winter, Scotland is continuing its battle against Covid-19. The virus has already put immense strain on the NHS over summer and autumn. That pressure will only intensify as we enter the winter months.
In Glasgow and the surrounding area, we have already seen how the impact of Covid-19 is putting pressure on Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS Board’s flu vaccination programme, with many vulnerable people having to wait for their flu jabs much longer than was anticipated. That is why Conservative members believe that in order to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 and to ease pressure on the NHS during the next crucial few months, more testing and faster contact tracing are essential, as we look to slow down transmission of the virus in our health and social care system.
Therefore, in the spirit of the Scottish Labour Party’s motion, we urge the Scottish National Party Government to introduce routine weekly Covid-19 testing for NHS staff and social care workers who have been on the front line protecting the nation during this awful pandemic.
However, based on its record so far, I am seriously concerned that the SNP Government has a long way to go before it could realise that pledge. Since the crisis began in March, it has continuously failed to ramp up Scotland’s testing capacity. Only last month did the SNP Government’s review of its own testing strategy note that further work was required to speed up the pace of turnaround times, which could have allowed for quicker contact tracing and subsequent isolation of people who are considered to be close contacts. If that had been achieved, it would undoubtedly have reduced transmission. That important point lies at the heart of the Scottish Conservative’s amendment.
Furthermore, from the beginning of the pandemic we have repeatedly called on the SNP to address shortcomings in Scotland’s testing capacity, and we have offered constructive suggestions on how to do so. For example, we have called on the Government to increase the number of mobile testing units across the country, which would significantly bolster Scotland’s testing capacity. Take-up at testing sites has been low, largely because of the distance that key workers must travel to get to them; more are therefore required to support people in rural areas and care homes.
I have serious concerns in relation to care homes and regular testing of staff. In July, the health secretary pledged that all care home staff would be tested weekly, but data shows that between 26 October and 1 November, approximately only 79 per cent of Scotland’s care home staff were tested for Covid-19.
Warm words are all well and good, but action matters more. How are the Scottish people supposed to have faith in the SNP Government’s ability to ramp up testing this winter for care home staff when it continually fails to meet its pledges? The SNP must finally get serious and focus its efforts on ensuring weekly routine testing for all care home staff. It owes that to Scotland’s elderly and vulnerable population.
Let me take the opportunity to remind the SNP to abide by the vote in Parliament last week that called for the immediate establishment of a public inquiry to find out what has gone wrong in our care homes during the pandemic.