Neil Gray has been branded “Michael Matheson mark 2” for failing NHS patients and becoming mired in personal scandal, just like the man he replaced as SNP health secretary a year ago today (Saturday).
The Scottish Conservatives said the crisis in Scotland’s health service was greater than ever, 12 months on from Mr Matheson resigning over his iPad roaming charges claim.
Shadow health secretary Dr Sandesh Gulhane highlighted Mr Gray’s “roll call of failure”, including excess A&E waiting times leading to an estimated 2,303 avoidable deaths, missed cancer treatment targets, a record number of Scots languishing on waiting lists and falling GP numbers.
He described Mr Gray as a “lame duck” health secretary, who had been sidelined by John Swinney and distracted by the scandal over him taking ministerial limos to football matches.
Scottish Conservative shadow health secretary Dr Sandesh Gulhane said: “Neil Gray’s year as health secretary has been a roll call of failure.
“He is Michael Matheson Mark 2 – another out-of-his-depth SNP health secretary too distracted by personal scandal to tackle the crisis in our NHS.
“Patients and frontline staff deserve better yet, during Neil Gray’s year in post, things have got even worse by virtually every measurement.
“Record numbers of Scots – one in six – are languishing on an NHS waiting list and more than 2,300 patients are estimated to have died needlessly because of appalling A&E waiting times.
“GP numbers continue to fall, delayed discharge continues to get worse despite the SNP promising to eradicate it, cancer treatment targets are being missed across the board and three-quarters of dental practices won’t take on new NHS patients.
“Neil Gray is a lame duck health secretary who has already been undermined by John Swinney. Like Michael Matheson, he should resign.”
Notes to editors
A&E
In the last year, just 64% of patients were seen at A&E within 4 hours. According to data from Public Health Scotland, almost half a million people (469,135) spent more than 4 hours waiting to be seen at A&E since last February. (A&E Statistics, Public Health Scotland, 29 January 2025, link)
Over 160,000 people spent more than 8 hours waiting in A&E since last February. According to Public Health Scotland figures, 165,834 people in total spent more than 8 hours in A&E since the beginning of February 2024. (A&E Statistics, Public Health Scotland, 29 January 2025, link)
Since last February, over 70,000 people spent more than 12 hours waiting in A&E. According to data from Public Health Scotland, 73,375 spent more than 12 hours waiting to be seen in A&E across Scotland. (A&E Statistics, Public Health Scotland, 29 January 2025, link)
It is estimated that 2,303 people have died due to long wait times in A&E in the last year. Research conducted by the Scottish Conservatives has revealed that 165,834 people waited more than 8 hours in A&E since the beginning of February 2024 leading to an estimated 2,303 excess deaths. They have used modelling applied by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) which calculates that for every 72 patients who experience waits of 8 to 12 hours from the time of arrival in A&E, there is one additional death. (Scottish Conservative Research, 29 January 2025, available on request; Royal College of Emergency Medicine, January 2023, link)
Cancer Screenings
In the last year, only 72% of patients received treatment within the 62-day target. According to Public Health Scotland, the 62-day standard for cancer treatment states that 95% of eligible patients should receive their first cancer treatment within 62 days of an urgent referral. (Cancer Waiting Times, Public Health Scotland, 17 December 2024, link)
In the last year, no Health Board except NHS Lanarkshire met the 62-day cancer referral standard. According to Public Health Figures, NHS Lanarkshire was the only health board to meet the 62-day cancer referral standard since February 2024. (Cancer Waiting Times, Public Health Scotland, 17 December 2024, link)
The SNP Government have not met the 62-day cancer referral standard in over a decade. In every single quarter since Q4 2012, less than 95% of patients referred to cancer treatment started treatment within 62 days. (Cancer Waiting Times, Public Health Scotland, 19 December 2023, link; The Herald, 24 September 2024, link)
GPs
The number of available GPs decreased in 2024. According to RCGP Scotland, in 2024 there were 3,453.1 WTE GPs in Scotland, a 0.7% decrease from 2023. Moreover, the number of GP sessions lost to sickness absence was around 5,500 (15%) higher than in 2022-2023, and the number of hours lost to sickness for non-doctor staff was around 50,000 (11%) higher than in 2022-2023. (RCGP, 10 December 2024, link)
Dental care
In Autumn 2024, only one in four dental practices in Scotland could offer NHS appointments to new patients within three months. According to the British Dental Association in Scotland, six Scottish council areas were considered ‘dental deserts’ because no practices could take on new adult NHS patients within three months. (BDA, 17 October 2024, link)
Hospital waits
One in six Scots are on an NHS waiting list. According to Public Health Scotland figures, this figure hit 863,535 patients as of the end of September 2024. Additionally, nearly 9,000 of these patients had been waiting over two years for inpatient or outpatient care. (NHS waiting times - stage of treatment, Public Health Scotland, 26 November 2024, link)
Delayed discharge
In October 2024, 2,030 people couldn’t be discharged from hospital, the worst since guidelines were changed in July 2016. Compared with the previous three census points, this is higher than September 2024 (1,951), August 2024 (2,009) and July 2024 (1,961). (Delayed discharges in NHS Scotland monthly, Public Health Scotland, 3 December 2024, link)
Drugs crisis
In the first six months after Neil Gray became Health Secretary, there was a 5% increase in drug-related hospital admissions and 7% increase where ambulances were called to intervene in potential fatal overdoses, respectfully. According to Public Health Scotland statistics, there was a 5% increase in drug-related hospital admissions between April and June 2024. Moreover, between June and August 2024, there was a 7% increase where ambulances were called to intervene and prevent someone from fatally over-dosing. (Rapid Action Drug Alerts and Response (RADAR) quarterly report, Public Health Scotland, 29 October 2024, link)