Why the SNP needs to realise the importance of the NHS to the economy
Long NHS waiting lists mean people may struggle to perform well at work or have to give up their job completely until they receive the treatment they need
When talking about the benefits of the National Health Service, people tend to focus on the fairness and morality of providing care that is “free at the point of use” and that, until relatively recently, the NHS was ranked as the world’s best healthcare system.
Sometimes its advocates stress how cost-effective it is, with Americans paying vastly more, in terms of the combined cost of public and private healthcare. However, what is often overlooked is the NHS’s importance to the economy.
As of September 30, it was estimated that there were more than 628,000 patients on at least one waiting list for treatment. For some, their condition will be serious enough that they have to give up their job, but it is also true that a sick workforce will never be as productive as a healthy one.
Economically inactive
According to the new CBI-Addleshaw Goddard Scottish productivity index, the share of economically inactive people due to long-term sickness increased from 31.6 per cent in 2023 to 34.3 per cent last year, well above the UK rate of 28.6. This figure had been falling between 2004 and 2015, but has since been “rising steadily”.
Michelle Ferguson, Scotland director for the Confederation of British Industry, said government, the NHS and business needed to work together to find ways to address the problem. A particular focus was needed on “ensuring that people don’t leave work”, she said, as “once they leave work due to ill health, the chances of them coming back are worse”.
READ MORE: Watchdog warns Scotland's NHS 'financially unsustainable' despite SNP's £3bn extra funding
Public services like health, education and the police are absolutely vital to this country’s future prospects. On the SNP’s watch, these foundation stones of our economy and society have been crumbling.
If they continue to do so, there is a serious risk that a vicious spiral will develop in which tax revenues fall, public services get worse, and revenues fall yet further.
Business leaders are right to sound the alarm. The question is whether the SNP government is actually going to do something about it – and simply saying “blame Westminster” won’t help anyone.
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