Health Secretary sets out plans for investing, protecting and renewing Scotland’s NHS.
Health Secretary Angela Constance has said that ‘people will be at the heart of everything she does’ after committing to delivering continued progress in the NHS.
Ms Constance will set out a commitment to investing in, protecting and renewing Scotland’s NHS at Parliament on Wednesday, following her appointment as Health Secretary last month.
A detailed plan to improve patient flow – reducing delayed discharge and the pressure on the Accident and Emergency – will be published within the first 100 days of Parliament.
There will also be a sharp focus on continuing to lower waiting times and increase access to community care settings, including GPs, with several key healthcare targets met over the last year, including:
waits of over a year for new outpatient appointments down by 77%, since July 2025, with inpatient / daycase waits of over a year almost halving
over 168,000 additional appointments and procedures have been delivered in 2025-26, when compared to the previous year, exceeding the 150,000 target
improved diagnostics with thousands more people diagnosed faster to allow them to move onto treatment pathways, with the combined waiting list for eight key diagnostics at the lowest level since May 2021
more than 95% of cancer patients receiving treatment within 31 days of the decision to treat – with a median wait of two days, the joint lowest on record
improved access to GPs, via investment in 30 planned walk-in centres, with 6 already open, and £531 million record investment in primary care to boost recruitment
and long waits for access to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) at historic lows with the 90% standard met and maintained a year ahead of schedule.
Ahead of a visit to NHS Golden Jubilee, the UK’s largest centre for hip and knee operations, Ms Constance said:
“I cherish our National Health Service and will do everything in my power to protect, renew and reform our most precious national asset.
“We have made significant progress across the system by reducing long waits, improving access, strengthening primary care and investing in prevention and innovation.
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“It’s time to go further by making access to healthcare easier and at the heart of everything we do will be people – the staff who deliver care with skill and compassion every day and the patients and families who depend on our NHS.
“We are not complacent. I know there is more work to do but I am ready to deliver further progress in our NHS.”
