Covid exposed the horrible injustices in our broken care home system.
Staff who go beyond the call of duty are on low wages and receive different amounts of pay across the country. The quality of service is patchy and residents urgently need stronger rights to see their loved ones.
So the thinking behind a national care service – of driving up pay and standards – was a good one. But the SNP government’s handling of the NCS has been a fiasco.
They failed to bring key stakeholders such as trade unions and the local authorities on board with them. They failed to put together the cross-party coalitions required for such far-reaching change. And they consistently refused to listen to concerns until it was too late. The decision to shelve the Bill, which means it is effectively dead, was sadly inevitable.
It also speaks of a government that has lost the ability to deliver after 17 years in power. They struggle to build ferries, drive down NHS waiting times or get the basics right. They also get bogged down in needless ethics scandals like the one that brought down Michael Matheson.
The losers in this sorry situation are the care home users who desperately need change. Care homes make big profits on the back of low paid staff and the NCS could have been the model to challenge this injustice.
The reality is we are no further forward compared to Covid time and arguably we have regressed even further. SNP ministers should apologise to Scots for this debacle.
Another own goal
Politicians need time off just like the rest of us. Neil Gray wants to cheer on his beloved Aberdeen FC at the weekend he’s entitled to do so. But repeatedly using an official government car to get to and from games is not a great look.
Most supporters make do with taking the train or the bus to matches. As Health Secretary, there is no issue with him representing the Scottish Government on occasion.
But Gray choosing to attend Aberdeen games, and no other domestic matches, in his ministerial limo will leave some members of the public wondering how much work was taking place.
Gray has apologised and insisted he has nothing to hide. But the whole affair risks damaging the already low trust the public has in politicians.
When it comes to spending taxpayers’ cash, SNP ministers need to watch every penny. And ditching the chauffeur-driven car for football days out is a must.
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