John Swinney has defended controversial plans to create a National Care Service in Scotland despite unions withdrawing their support.
The First Minister insisted today his Government’s proposals were the “most effective way” of improving care services across the country.
Council chiefs, NHS bosses and the Scottish Trade Union Congress (STUC) have all sharply criticised the SNP’s plans and claimed they would deliver meaningful reform for the sector.
Local authorities have accused the Scottish Government of pushing through a power-grab which will centralise adult social care and social work into a single body ultimately accountable to ministers.
Swinney insisted today he was “going to take forward the discussion on the National Care Service”. The SNP leader said: “We’ve made it clear there is space for dialogue and agreement around the provisions in the National Care Service.”
He said the service is the “most effective way” to achieve the goal of improving care for those who need it.
Swinney stressed: “What we’ve got to do here is to focus on the outcome and what matters. What matters is that we all want to see an improvement in the care that is available to individuals in Scotland and we can achieve that through the National Care Service Bill mechanism.
“The Government has at no stage been unwilling to develop our proposals, to listen to others, and we are trying to do that as we take forward the proposals.”
Adding “an improvement in care arrangements” is “what people are interested in, the First Minister said: “That’s the outcome I want people to focus on and I think that is the outcome we all agree is important.
“The National Care Service Bill is the most effective way to enable us to get there.
“But we will continue to engage in dialogue with all relevant parties to make headway on the proposals.”
STUC general secretary Roz Foyer claimed the Government “seems hellbent on repeating the mistakes of the past” by pushing ahead with the legislation, adding: “That is something that the STUC and our affiliated unions cannot uphold.”
She said there needs to be “urgent investment in social care and improved wages to attract and retain skilled staff” to the sector.
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