First Minister John Swinney is enjoying a sizeable poll lead as he appears to steady the SNP ship.
But he will be well aware that delivery of better public services is the key to victory when the real Holyrood election takes place next year.
He was right to apologise personally yesterday over the state of the NHS.
The service continues to struggle to meet demand despite record investment.
SNP ministers must realise this is a devolved area of which they are entirely responsible. Passing the buck to Westminster, blaming Covid and claiming winter weather is the problem will no longer cut it when it comes to the long-term problems of the health service.
Waiting times in A&E wards remain sky-high, with the most unfortunate patients facing waits of more than eight or even 12 hours for treatment.
The backlog for non-emergency procedures is vast and many patients are breaking the bank to go private instead.
None of this is a reflection on hardworking frontline NHS staff who go above and beyond to offer the best treatment they can. But conditions endured by medics and patients, as outlined in a damning report by nursing group the RCN this week, shows the grim reality in many wards across the country.
Demand for beds is so high that some patients are being treated in corridors and even offices. And the service, says the RCN, in on the brink of “collapse”.
This situation cannot continue.
The Scottish Government will be judged on its record on the NHS at next year’s Holyrood elections.
It must make improvements its top priority or the SNP’s current poll lead could well be in danger.
Age-old lesson
LABOUR too has a key problem in the lead up to the Holyrood election.
A golden rule of politics is parties should never alienate or antagonise the grey vote. Older people defend their interests doggedly in the polling booths.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves ignored this iron law when she slashed winter fuel payments and Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar is paying the price.
Labour looked to be coasting to Holyrood election victory in the wake of their Westminster triumph in July. An autumn opinion poll put support among older voters at 30 per cent but the latest snapshot has seen it plummet to 11 per cent.
Lessons have to be learned in Downing Street about how the Government angered a key part of the electorate.
Announcing the end of the WFP ahead of the Budget, Reeves derailed Labour’s entire agenda for a cut that is wildly unpopular – especially with older voters.
Labour has to repair relations with older voters if it wants to present a real challenge to John Swinney and the SNP next year.
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