Meeting of the Parliament 16 April 2024
I begin with an important part of what Dr Hilary Cass said. Dr Cass highlighted the
“increasingly toxic, ideological and polarised public debate”
that does nothing to serve young people who are accessing care, their families or the national health service staff who work to care for them. We should be aware of that when we have such discussions.
The Cass review is undoubtedly important and the Scottish Government has consistently been clear that the review’s final report and findings will be considered closely by the Government, health boards and wider partners, in the context of how healthcare can best be delivered in Scotland. That will take some time, because Dr Cass’s considered 400-page report was published only last Wednesday. We are also clear that much of the report deals with clinical decisions, which are—rightly—made by clinicians, not politicians.
However, the main point that members are aware of is that the Cass review deals with services in NHS England, not in NHS Scotland. It is therefore clearly not the responsibility of the Scottish Government to respond: it is for the UK Government to respond with ideas for its NHS.