National Health Service

Part of the debate – in the Scottish Parliament at 11:55 am on 14 March 2002.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Janis Hughes Janis Hughes Labour 11:55, 14 March 2002

We do not need lessons from Ben Wallace on rebuilding the NHS.

I have given the facts, not the type of scaremongering that those in opposition—I use the term widely—put about. The SNP motion mentions

"fewer nurses and fewer acute beds", but 10,000 more nurses will qualify by 2005, which is 1,500 more than was planned.

As the minister mentioned, the Executive recognises that the recruitment and retention of nursing staff is vital. The many new initiatives, such as fully funded return-to-practice courses and guaranteed employment for newly qualified nurses, go some way towards addressing the issue. However, as I have said on other occasions, we must go further by considering how we train our nurses and whether we can offer a less academic route into the profession. There is a vast, untapped resource of people who would prefer that type of career.

The fundamental point about bed numbers escapes some members. Working in the NHS is a continual learning curve. New technology, new surgical techniques and new research findings lead to continually changing protocols and ways of working. Minor surgery once necessitated a stay in hospital, but that is not now the case. Each month, more procedures become suitable for day treatment, which reduces the need for beds. Some members get hung up on reductions in bed numbers because they simply do not understand the issue.

The SNP motion claims that the NHS is shrinking, which shows a complete lack of understanding of the way in which the service works. The SNP members are laughing—I am glad that it is amusing to them because it is not amusing to me.

As a constituency MSP, it would be remiss of me to say that everything in the garden is rosy. I am the first to say that we have not yet got things right. Like that of other members, my postbag reflects the fact that some people wait too long for treatment. The minister acknowledged that out-patient waiting times are not as we would wish. However, for the first time in many years, work is under way to address the problem.

There is a good story to tell on health and it is time that we told it. I will never forget the 18 years of Tory rule. In opposition, it is easy to blame those in Government, which is what we hear from the SNP day in and day out. I speak from first hand experience of those years. What would the SNP do if, heaven forbid, it had the chance? Nicola Sturgeon and her colleagues should put their money where their mouths are. They should show us their policies and tell us exactly how they would fund them. Independence tomorrow would immediately reduce Scotland's health budget by £1 billion. How many more patients would suffer then?

For every patient who has a complaint about the NHS, thousands more are delighted with the care that they receive. It is time that we started to focus on the positives. As the Executive amendment says, we commend the commitment and dedication of NHS staff. We owe it to them and to patients to look to the future in a positive light.