The Scottish Government has come under fire for leaving hospital corridors looking like “scenes from the Crimean War”.
As the latest A & E waiting times figures show 8,628 people waited longer than the target four hours to be treated opposition politicians reacted with fury at the increasing numbers still waiting after eight and 12 hours.
Scottish Labour’s health spokeswoman Jackie Baillie said the NHS is “heading for a winter catastrophe” as new analysis shows the number of patients waiting more than 12 hours has increased twelve-fold since 2019.
In the week ending September 29 2024 1,262 patients spent more than 12 hours waiting to be treated, compared to just 102 in the same week of 2019.
And the number waiting more than eight hours increased six-fold, with 3,048 waiting more than eight hours compared to 496 in the same week of 2019.
Baillie said: “After 17 years in power, the SNP has no excuse for hospital corridors that look like scenes from the Crimean War.
“Long waits should never be business as usual in A&E but we’re heading for a winter catastrophe if the SNP doesn’t step in now to stop this alarming trend.
“Patients who come to A&E are in need of emergency treatment – waiting 12 hours could be the difference between life and death.
“A Scottish Labour government will not accept this as the new normal and will pull all the levers at its disposal to make the NHS work again.”
Scottish Lib-Dem leader and health spokesman Alex Cole-Hamilton said under the SNP government emergency care was “locked in a state of permacrisis”.
He stated: “Waiting times have been barely improved since last winter and this week’s figures are equal to figures from late December last year.
“We need to see urgent action from this SNP government to stop this crisis getting even worse as we head into winter so that patients and staff are not left to suffer.
“Scottish Liberal Democrats would overhaul the SNP’s failed NHS Recovery Plan, get you fast access to GPs and help people leave hospital on time through a new minimum wage for care workers that is £2 higher.”