Skip to main content
Work with the NEU
New Scottish Health Minister must end delayed hospital discharge
Scottish Labour warns more than half a billion pounds of public money has been lost through the practice
Humza Yousaf, Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care

ENDING delayed discharge must be a priority for new Scottish Health Minister Humza Yousaf as more than half a billion pounds of public money has been lost through the practice, according to Scottish Labour.

Figures obtained by the party show that between November 2014, when First Minister Nicola Sturgeon took office, and 2019, delayed discharge cost the public purse as much as £646 million.  

The figures also reveal that 2.7m bed days were lost during that time.  

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
First Minister of Scotland John Swinney (left) with Minister for Health and Social Care Neil Gray at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow, June 16, 2025
NHS Crisis / 10 August 2025
10 August 2025
First Minister John Swinney with medical staff Louise Kirkby (centre) and leading physiotherapist Karen Laird, during a visit to Falkirk Community Hospital in Falkirk, July 9, 2025
Scotland / 9 July 2025
9 July 2025
RELIEVING THE STRAIN: Could some version of ‘hospital at h
Features / 9 April 2025
9 April 2025
Born from my communist social worker mother’s efforts to bridge healthcare gaps, Labour’s push for home-based care now risks becoming another avenue for the US corporate takeover of the NHS, writes RICHARD CLARKE