Opinion · Health & Social Care · Cura Insight
Scotland's National Care Service vision: full of promise, short on delivery
MSP for Dumbarton; Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, Scottish Parliament
Published 3 min read
Many of us involved in politics and governance have long appreciated the absolutely vital role that social care plays as a key partner to the NHS.
Key findings
- Baillie says the idea of a National Care Service was first developed by Scottish Labour more than a decade before the SNP adopted it, and that Nicola Sturgeon had initially opposed the concept.
- Baillie argues the SNP's resulting plan became "nothing more than a power grab from local councils" that focused on structures and spin rather than transforming culture or improving staff conditions.
- Baillie notes the BBC reported on 1 March 2023 that the Scottish government had decided to delay the National Care Service legislation until after the SNP leadership contest.
- Baillie says thousands of Scots are still paying non-residential care charges that the SNP first pledged to scrap in 2021, following the Independent Review of Adult Social Care, without the commitment being delivered.
- Baillie says the SNP has repeatedly voted with the Conservatives against Labour proposals to raise care workers' pay, and calls for reform that gives social care equal value to the NHS.
For others, the pandemic revealed just how essential social care is for our society.
Overnight, the people of the UK recognised the incredible contribution that care workers make – including in the most dangerous of situations.
As such, I was delighted when the SNP government – which until that point had nothing of note to say about social care or the workforce – announced it would seek to legislate for a National Care Service.
The idea of a National Care Service to lift standards and support the workforce was, according to the Scottish Labour Party, first developed by Scottish Labour over a decade ago – while Nicola Sturgeon was adamantly opposed to the plan at the time, I was very encouraged to watch her Damascene conversion to the cause of reform.
So what went wrong with the SNP's plan?
But as the excitement dissipated, it became clear that what the SNP really had in mind was not the National Care Service that Scotland needed.
Rather than transforming culture, the SNP focused on structures, and rather than focusing on improving staff conditions, the SNP focused on spin.
Instead of listening to the workforce and the trade unions, the SNP spent a fortune on consultancy firms.
And the resulting plan was nothing more than a power grab from local councils that would do nothing for the workforce, make little impact on care standards and completely fail to reform the sector as needed.
What the SNP offered us was nothing more than a National Centralisation Service which will do nothing to support those receiving care or help the workforce.
Fresh from months of defending the bill to the hilt, Health Secretary Humza Yousaf was more than happy to concede the need to put the bill on the backburner as part of his SNP leadership election, with the BBC reporting on 1 March 2023 that the government had decided to delay the legislation until after the leadership contest.
The resulting plan was nothing more than a power grab from local councils that would do nothing for the workforce
What has the delay cost Scotland's care workers?
It seems that the prospect of career advancement is enough to make any SNP spokesperson perform an about-turn on just about any issue.
And while this bill is stuck in legislative limbo, thousands of Scots are still paying through the nose for non-residential care charges that the SNP promised to scrap years ago – a commitment first made in 2021 following the Independent Review of Adult Social Care and repeated in successive Programmes for Government without being delivered.
For the workforce – much applauded, but little rewarded – nothing has changed. Instead, the SNP has time and again lined up with the Tories to vote against Labour proposals to boost their pay.
Scotland’s care workers and those for whom they care do not need promises of jam tomorrow – they need reform now.
What would Scottish Labour do differently?
That’s why Labour remains committed to real and meaningful reform of the care sector, giving it equal value to the NHS, which will also help to tackle the crisis in our NHS.
Reform that puts workers and those receiving care before government mandarins and consultancy firms.
Reform that can change lives and build a solid foundation for looking after the most in need in our society.
While the SNP turn their gaze inwards, it is the Scottish Labour party that is listening to care workers and planning the care sector of tomorrow.
