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John Melone's avatar

Are you incapable of displaying any objectivity Dean? The discharge of patients to care homes became a problem for every government tackling the pandemic. In the defence of governmental decisions (North and south of the border), these decisions were taken on a case by case basis by clinicians not politicians. Boris clumsily blamed clinicians at time, he was of course right, but just shouldn't have admitted it. Many other western govns followed the same policy. Only in you warped imagination (Or in the daily express) can this be considered an existential crisis for the Scotgov.

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Dean M Thomson's avatar

"The discharge of patients to care homes became a problem for every government tackling the pandemic"

So? 'Someone else made the same mistake' isn't really much of a defence is it?

" Many other western govns followed the same policy."

'Everybody else made the same mistake', again, so? Bad judgement is bad judgement. Besides, underinvestment in care sector and failure to tackle bed blocking is NOT an 'everybody else did the same mistake' situation.

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John Melone's avatar

Perhaps you can provide evidence that the Scotgov deliberately underfunded the care sector relative to the rUK? Or perhaps you will admit the care sector funded has been undermined by tory austerity since 2008?

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Dean M Thomson's avatar

There is a plethora of evidence this government for a long time has been mishandling the health, adult and social care budgets:

Back in 2017 the care sector in Scotland was warning it needed an extra £1bn

https://www.insider.co.uk/news/scotland-care-sector-money-problems-11682701

Not only did it not receive that, but by 2021 the SNP budget by Kate Forbes *cut* health budgets - despite the pandemic impacts

https://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/snp-accused-of-fantasy-economics-around-health-budget-cuts-3506192

Furthermore, the failed SNP policy proposal for a National Care Service meant 60% of fresh social care funding on bureaucratic reform (on a policy now abandoned)

https://www.cosla.gov.uk/news/2022/COSLA-Spokesperson-National-Care-Service-September-2022

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John Melone's avatar

It's increasingly difficult to word a riposte to comments that contain so many outright lies. Health care has been in UK wide decline for decades prior to the pandemic. You outline the National Care Service which was a policy floated AFTER the pandemic. You then disingenuously claim the bureaucracy cost 60% of new funding, the bureaucracy cost 2 million. The NCS policy has been delayed not scrapped. The Scotgov has continually outspent rUK on health spending since 2003 by as much as 3000 per head.

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Dean M Thomson's avatar

First, I don't know why you're talking about healthcare UK wide. It's been a devolved responsibility since 1999. We're talking about healthcare - specifically adult social care etc - in Scotland.

Further, the Nat Care Service swallowed up 60% of fresh resources to the sector on a bureaucratic reform now abandoned, all when the sector was desperately needing resources to recover from the pandemic. So the Nat Care Service is incredibly relevant.

And yes, the NCS has been scrapped, or effectively so. It's singing with the choir invisible, it's passed on, it's pushing up the daisies. It's an ex-parrot. It'll never see the light of day. Councils don't want it and continually push relentlessly against it

https://www.westlothian.gov.uk/article/78398/Council-call-for-National-Care-Service-to-be-abandoned

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John Melone's avatar

Healthcare is not autonomous in Scotland. It is funded by the UK Gov through the Barnet formula and subject to market conditions created by the UK NHS. Why are Unionist commentators like yourself INCAPABLE of acknowledging this fact? I dont think you understand the National Care Service plan... the Service would have swallowed 60% of the new resource (additional resource provided by Scotgov)only IF it had gone ahead.

https://news.stv.tv/scotland/cosla-warns-over-cost-of-running-scotlands-proposed-national-care-service

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