Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 12 June 2025
12 Jun 2025 · S6 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
First Minister’s Question Time
National Health Service (Treatment Waiting Times)
I declare an interest as a practising NHS general practitioner.
I was contacted by John, who had already waited 40 weeks for orthopaedic surgery. He had had no updates from the health board. He looked himself and found that his wait had increased—it had been 52 weeks in September and is now 67 weeks. The uncertainty is a major source of frustration and pain.
After the First Minister has just read out what is not happening, and at a time when we can track our online shopping orders to the minute, why is there no transparency about waiting times for hospital appointments?
In the same item of business
6. Foysol Choudhury (Lothian) (Lab)
Lab
To ask the First Minister how the Scottish Government is working to ensure that patients are accurately informed of waiting times for NHS treatments followin...
The First Minister (John Swinney)
SNP
We recognise the importance of transparent and regular communication with patients, which is why we have in place a standard package of communications that a...
Foysol Choudhury
Lab
It has been more than a year since my constituent was referred to a dermatologist. He does not know when he will be seen, and his skin condition and mental h...
The First Minister
SNP
As I have made clear on a number of occasions, there are individuals who are waiting too long for treatment. There are many people who are treated timeously ...
Joe FitzPatrick (Dundee City West) (SNP)
SNP
The issue that Mr Choudhury raises is really important. Can the First Minister say more about what the Scottish Government is doing to reduce waiting times f...
The First Minister
SNP
In the past financial year, we invested an additional £30 million to drive action to address the longest waits. We expected that that would deliver 64,000 ap...
Sandesh Gulhane (Glasgow) (Con)
Con
I declare an interest as a practising NHS general practitioner. I was contacted by John, who had already waited 40 weeks for orthopaedic surgery. He had had...
The First Minister
SNP
The information about the length of waits is available. Mr Choudhury put a question to me about the visibility of that information and Dr Gulhane has just do...
The Presiding Officer
NPA
There is a particularly high level of interest in supplementary questions across the chamber. I would be grateful for concise questions and responses.