John Swinney pledges ‘radical reshaping’ of Scotland’s public servicesThe First Minister announced his Programme for Government as MSPs returned to Holyrood after the summer recess.First Minister John Swinney has promised a ‘radical reshaping’ of Scotland’s public services as he announced his Programme for Government. (Jane Barlow/PA)Katrine Bussey2 minutes ago
John Swinney is to set about the “the most radical reshaping of public services” in Holyrood’s history, with Scotland’s First Minister planning a new structure for the country’s councils while slashing the number of regional health boards from 14 to just two.
The First Minister announced the changes in his Programme for Government, telling MSPs his government was “ambitious for Scotland”.
He restated his commitment to “eradicate” child poverty, and to tackle the climate crisis, with the SNP leader also promising “personal leadership” to “tackle the epidemic of male violence against women and girls”.
The rollout of a £2 cap on single bus fares to parts of the west of Scotland from this coming Monday was also announced.
But much of Mr Swinney’s keynote address – delivered on the day MSPs returned to the Scottish Parliament after the summer recess – focused on the need for public service reform.
However, the trade union Unite branded his plans to cut health boards a “slash and burn programme for the NHS”.
NHS changes could lead to thousands of job losses, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham warned. (Stefan Rousseau/PA)
Union general secretary Sharon Graham said the measures would “inevitably result in swingeing cuts and thousands of job losses across the public sector”, as she warned that workers “will not be the collateral damage for the Scottish government’s failings”.
She hit out after Mr Swinney told MSPs about his plans for “radical and widespread public service reform”.
Public services need to “fundamentally shift” focus, he said, saying there must be a “decisive shift to prevention and early intervention”.
He added: “That will mean, over these next five years, the most radical reshaping of public services since the establishment of the Scottish Parliament.”
Mr Swinney said that Scotland’s NHS would undergo the “most significant structural reform” since Holyrood was established in 1999.
That will see the Scottish Government replace the existing 14 territorial NHS boards with two strategic health boards.
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This change, coupled with “targeted investment” and efforts announced on Monday to ensure patients spend less time in hospital will mean that by the end of 2031 no patient waits more than 26 weeks for treatment, Mr Swinney promised.
For Scotland’s 32 local councils, he promised a “rebalancing of power”.
The current arrangements for local government mean that “some of our councils are too small to be strategic and some are too big to be local”, the First Minister said.
Setting out plans for this change, he said the government is beginning a three-month period of “intensive engagement” with local authorities and others “about a new structure for local government in Scotland”.
Mr Swinney went on to say he was “open” to devolving new powers to these new “stronger, more strategic” bodies – including possibly if new powers are transferred from Westminster.
Promising ministers would also work to “substantially reduce” the number of public bodies in Scotland, he said that Transport Scotland would become part of the Scottish Government.
Meanwhile environment bodies, such as the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa), NatureScot, and Zero Waste Scotland, are to be merged to create a single national organisation, while a single ferries body will be created for routes covering the Clyde and Western Isles.
Mr Swinney hailed his plans as being an “ambitious programme of public service reform”, adding it was “a programme designed to transform Scotland”.
John Swinney announced his plans as MSPs returned to Holyrood after the summer recess. (Jane Barlow/PA)
Mr Swinney said: “As a result of these actions, at the end of these five years, people in Scotland will notice clear improvements in their lives and in their experience of public services delivered by the Scottish Government and our partners.”
However, Reform UK’s Scottish leader Malcolm Offord said the First Minister was offering the “same old empty promises, just rebranded”.
Lord Offord insisted the government’s plans were “a medley of sticking plasters and gimmicks instead of practical, long-term solutions for the benefit of the Scottish people”, going on to accuse the First Minister of “rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.”
Scottish Labour’s acting leader Dame Jackie Baillie also said she had “heard many of these promises before”.
Dame Jackie said: “There are new NHS targets replacing those missed so far, familiar promises on new legislation and infrastructure projects, and lots of well-trod rhetoric – but delivery is what matters.
“Warm words are no substitute for action and that is what needs to change in this government.
“We need real action to improve our NHS, make life more affordable and help our communities and our economy flourish.”
With the Scottish Government pressing ahead with plans for price cap on some staple food items, Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay accused his SNP rival of introducing “Soviet-style supermarket price-fixing plan”, branding this a “potty gimmick”.
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton meanwhile vowed to provide “fierce opposition” to the SNP’s “centralising” plans to slash the number of health boards from 14 to just two.
Scottish Green co-leader Gillian Mackay complained that £2 bus fares had been “kicked into the long grass across most of Scotland” adding that the Programme for Government contained “no plan to implement rent controls” while she said a “promised ban” on conversion practices had been “shelved” by the SNP.
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