John Swinney's SNP accused of running Scotland into the ground as grim figures expose broken public services
Dire stats on booze deaths and school violence underline the state of the nation
WHAT A STATE John Swinney's SNP accused of running Scotland into the ground as grim figures expose broken public services
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
JOHN Swinney's SNP has been accused of running Scotland into the ground as grim figures exposed our broken public services.
Cancer treatment waits are the worst on record, sex crimes are up amid falling cop numbers, and homebuilding is at a new low.
Sign up for Scottish Sun
newsletter
Sign up
5
John Swinney's SNP has been accused of running Scotland into the ground
Credit: PA
5
One in three cancer patients did not start treatment by the target date
Credit: Alamy
5
Violence in kids has also increased, with 152 pupils found with weapons
Credit: Alamy
Dire stats on booze deaths and school violence underline the state of the nation, days before MSPs start a ten-week summer break.
On Tuesday night, John Swinney was told the buck stops with him and his Nats ministers for our 'broken' country.
Scots Labour leader Anas Sarwar said: 'From violence in our schools and on our streets, the crisis in our NHS and a housing crisis with no solution in sight, the SNP have had the power — but no plan.
'Scots are waiting months for a GP or medical appointment, our teachers are crying out for support, and communities are being left behind.
'But the truth is the SNP can't fix what they've broken. Scotland needs a new direction.'
The first devastating report that revealed the nation's disastrous state was the Recorded Crime in Scotland bulletin for 2024-25.
It showed sex offences have soared, with almost 15,000 incidents in the 12 months to April — the second-highest tally since 1971.
Rapes and attempted rapes rose by 15 per cent in a year to 2,897, almost eight a day. That's a 60 per cent rise over the last decade.
And weapon-carrying offences in schools jumped by 11 per cent to 152. The figures emerged days after campaigners against knife crimes took to Glasgow's streets.
Police Scotland reported in March that it had 16,533 officers, a decrease of 878 since 2020.
John Swinney defends Gray's car use after minister was 'driven to pub'
Tory shadow justice secretary Liam Kerr said: 'These shocking rises are the inevitable consequence of the SNP's savage cuts to frontline policing.
'Our streets are becoming less safe. The buck stops with the SNP, who have undermined our police and left our justice system at breaking point.'
Levels of non-sexual crimes of violence dipped slightly over the year and are 23 per cent lower than in 2006-07.
Justice Secretary Angela Constance insisted: 'Scotland continues to be a safe place to live. But I am concerned about a rise in reported sexual crimes.
'Our action to tackle sexual offending includes increasing confidence in the justice system so more victims come forward, improving support for victims and modernising the law.'
'SHAME' OF BED BLOCK
By Mark McLaughlin
BED-blocking hit a record high with patients spending 720,000 days in hospital after being deemed fit to leave.
It was the highest total since stats on delayed discharge were first compiled in 2016.
Figures for 2024-25 showed 6,600 stuck on wards because appropriate community care was not available.
Scots Tories health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said the stats should 'shame every SNP minister'.
The GP added: 'It's blocking beds needed for critical operations.
"It's also soul-destroying for patients who are desperate to get out of hospital.'
Health Secretary Neil Gray said: 'We are determined to deliver the reform our NHS needs to ensure it provides quality care for everyone now and into the future.'
But Rape Crisis Scotland chief executive Sandy Brindley said the rise in sex crimes was 'staggering' and 'alarming'.
She told the BBC: 'I'm as sure as I can be that this is linked to pornography and the toxic masculinity and culture young men in particular are being exposed to online.'
Ms Brindley said the rise 'should be a wake-up call to the Scottish Government' to improve education on relationships and consent.
Separate shameful data revealed cancer waiting times are at their worst level ever, with one in three patients facing 'deadly' delays.
Nearly a third diagnosed with 'an urgent suspicion of cancer' waited more than two months for treatment, despite a government pledge that they'd be seen within 62 days.
WARD EASE 'THANKS'
A TOP doctor has claimed NHS users 'should be grateful' to patients who go private as they are freeing up hospital beds.
Dr Iain Kennedy, right, blamed 'long waiting lists' as a survey showed a third of Scots households have paid for treatment.
The BMA Scotland chairman told their Liverpool conference: 'We should show appreciation to people forced to dip into their own pockets.'
Warning 'how bad things are', he added: 'The NHS is dying before our eyes.'
Only 69 per cent started therapy on target in the first three months of 2025, down from 73 per cent last year and almost 84 per cent before the Covid pandemic.
NHS Lanarkshire was the only health board to meet the target, Public Health Scotland said.
Dr Sorcha Hume, of Cancer Research UK, called the soaring waiting times 'unacceptable".
She said: 'The Scottish Government must take urgent action.
'We need a significant increase in investment in the workforce.
'Reforms to NHS infrastructure and services are also required.'
It was also revealed the number of women with breast cancer is expected to increase by 30 per cent in the next two decades to 71,000.
DIVIDE ON DRINK DEATHS
By Craig Paton
THE poorest Scots are six times more likely to die from alcohol than the most well-off, according to figures.
Health chiefs found 54.4 drink-linked fatalities per 100,000 in the ten per cent most deprived areas compared to just nine in the most affluent parts.
And they warned of a 21 per cent surge in liver and heart disease, strokes and cancer by 2043 if alcohol habits continue.
Public Health Scotland found Scots drink 50 per cent more than the recommended 14-unit limit.
Dr Tara Shivaji, of PHS, warned: 'This means thousands more individuals and families facing the devastating impacts of alcohol-related ill-health.
'Scotland is consuming too much alcohol.'
Charity Breast Cancer Now said Scots patients are complaining about 'long, anxious waits for a diagnosis and treatment'.
And Tory health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said: 'Scotland is facing a ticking timebomb when it comes to cancer cases on the SNP's watch.'
Scottish Labour's deputy leader Jackie Baillie called the record rise in Big-C delays 'disastrous'
Health Secretary Neil Gray said: 'We have directed £14million of the additional care funding for 2025/26 to cancer waiting times, with a focus on colorectal, urological and breast.'
Meanwhile, official figures show housebuilding has dropped to its lowest level in more than a decade. Only 11,902 private sector pads and 3,151 social homes were started last year, the lowest since 2012.
THEFTS HIGHEST IN 54 YEARS
By Graham Mann
RETAILERS suffered 44,730 thefts — 122 a day — as shoplifting surged to a 54-year high.
Ministers' figures showed cases soared by 16 per cent in 2024-25 hitting the highest level since 1971.
Justice Secretary Angela Constance last night pledged £4.2billion for justice chiefs saying: 'I recognise the significant harm and disruption caused by retail crime.'
Domestic abuse cases rocketed by 26 per cent with drug supply crimes up 14 per cent and 20 serious assaults on cops.
Labour's Mark Griffin said: 'Eye-watering rents are piling pressure on families, homelessness is shamefully high, people are stuck on endless social housing lists, and the dream of home ownership is slipping out of reach for a generation.'
The flagship Affordable Housing Supply Programme also fell by 31 per cent.
That's despite the Scottish Government declaring a national housing emergency in 2024.
Tory Meghan Gallacher blamed the SNP's 'reckless plans for permanent rent controls'.
She said: 'A hostile environment for investors has led to this disastrous collapse.'
Mairi McAllan, the Housing Secretary admitted the Scottish Government had to 'step up' its efforts.
She added: 'These challenges are made harder to tackle due to an incredibly difficult financial settlement from the UK Government.'
5
Sex crimes rose by 15 per cent wth 15,000 offences recorded in a year, the second highest since 1971
Credit: Alamy
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The National
28 minutes ago
- The National
Using an election as plebiscite referendum is just not going to fly
Most of us, I bet. But fun as it is to see those who only a few short years ago were proclaiming themselves to be 'All4Unity' – and now failing to find much unity among themselves – Galloway endorsing the right of voters in Scotland to choose to be independent is no longer the political showstopper that it could have been a couple of decades ago. Far more predictable was Labour minister Douglas Alexander popping up on BBC Scotland at the weekend and refusing – despite being asked three times – to say how Scotland can voluntarily leave the Union should they wish. READ MORE: Palestine Action activist rejects Home Secretary's Glasgow protest claim It's the question which is guaranteed to leave any Unionist spokesperson spinning towards the ground belching puffs of acrid smoke in their wake, because there's really no good answer they can give. Which of course is all the more reason to keep asking it. The fact is that most Scots, pro-independence or not, accept without question our right to self-determination. Implying or even stating that no such right exists, or dodging the question as Alexander tried to do, only serves to get right up people's noses. While it's not a strategy for independence, it's nevertheless a useful way to put some people on the spot and get the people of Scotland in general talking about the rights and wrongs of the matter. And let's face it, the more people who accept our right to choose independence and who start to consider that the question deserves to be put again, the more likely it is to happen. Short of a 'black swan' event which turns people so decisively against the Union that any vote becomes redundant, independence will probably only happen through a standalone referendum to begin a legal process of becoming independent. And even in the unlikely event of that black swan flying overhead, you'd still likely want a referendum to ratify and legitimise the outcome. So, having said that, let's recognise that using an election as a plebiscite referendum is just not going to fly. Not now. Probably not ever. I'm always puzzled how so many who argue that we absolutely must take this route can argue with 100% certainty that any UK government will say no to another referendum on independence, yet can still believe the same UK government would just roll over and say yes to actual independence in the face of a positive election result. The truth is this – in the unlikely event of being able to win 50% of the vote in a multi-party election, the best anyone in the UK Government will ever do is congratulate us on our result. It will only have effect in their eyes if we fall short, when in a twist on that classic Edinburgh expression, it will be a case of 'you'll have had your referendum'. And independence then really will be off the agenda for another generation. (Image: Supplied) What should matter more to independence supporters than what Westminster thinks is what the Scottish people think. And by that, I mean what people in Scotland really think, rather than what we might wish they thought instead. If anyone spends any time talking to voters in Scotland just now about what is important to them, they would find that even independence supporters are still overwhelmingly going to be voting first and foremost for a government, no matter what anyone else might want them to do. In the present circumstances, if the SNP were to try to use the next Scottish Parliament election as a proxy referendum, then you can probably say hello to a thumping Unionist majority at Holyrood. That's not because there's a thumping majority or anything like it out there for the Union, because there isn't. Rather, it'll be because most people – even independence supporters – will rightly conclude that there are lots of other pressing issues also needing decided. By standing on a platform not of 'independence, nothing less' but instead 'independence and nothing else', Scotland's main pro-independence party would be showing that it was no longer capable of being both pro-independence and being a government at the same time. And good luck getting Scotland to independence without having a pro-independence Scottish Government taking decisions in Scotland. There are a couple of reasons why Alex Salmond embraced the idea of a pre-legislative referendum as part of his moves to professionalise the SNP that he led. (Image: JASON REDMOND) Firstly, it was to help decouple independence supporters from their (then) loyalty to the Labour Party. But also, it was to allow people who wanted SNP representation to vote for the party, knowing that if it came to it, independence could be only decided later on in a separate vote for that purpose. While it was that first group who helped take Scotland so close in 2014, it was the second group of 'soft' SNP supporters who were instrumental in the 2011 SNP landslide which made that referendum possible at all. It was a shrewd move from a man who knew exactly what he was doing when he did it. And it was informed by the hard data that had come in from SNP canvassers all over the country, which had started to show that support for independence was not always the same as support for the SNP and vice versa. So by all means let a thousand flowers bloom in our strategic thinking. But let us always be realistic, grounded in reality and looking outwards to those we still need to persuade, rather than trying to set a political course based solely on what might make us feel good personally.
Scotsman
an hour ago
- Scotsman
Edinburgh by-election: Voters in Fountainbridge/Craiglockhart choose new councillor to replace Val Walker
Voters in Edinburgh's Fountainbridge/Craiglockhart ward go to the polls tomorrow, Thursday June 26, in a by-election where almost no-one is willing to predict the result. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The by-election was caused by the death of Labour councillor Val Walker, who served as convener of the council's culture and communities committee. There are 13 candidates bidding to replace her. As well as Labour, the Conservatives, SNP, Greens, Lib Dems and Reform UK, there are also five independents standing and representatives of the Scottish Libertarian Party and Scottish Family Party. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad At the last council elections in 2022, four of the five main parties all finished within six per cent of each other. Polling stations will be open from 7am until 10pm on Thursday June 26. | stock The Tories topped the poll with 26.6 per cent of first preferences, just enough to get their candidate elected in the first round of counting. It was almost a dead heat for second place between the SNP on 22.7 per cent and Labour on 22.4 per cent and they each took one of the two remaining seats. But the Greens were not far behind on 19.9 per cent. The Lib Dems got 7.1 per cent. Privately, sources in all the main parties confessed they had no idea who would win the by-election. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad One said: "This is at least a four-way marginal and the Lib Dems are trying where they didn't try before, so does that make it a five-way marginal?" Another said: "This may be the most open election I've ever been involved in - and I've been involved in quite a lot." With only one seat to fill, unless one candidate gets more than 50 per cent of first preferences - which is extremely unlikely here - the result will depend on how votes transfer as low-polling candidates are eliminated and their votes are redistributed according to second and further preferences. As well as Fountainbridge and Craiglockhart, the ward takes in Slateford and Kingsknowe. The current electorate is 18,945. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Any resident in the area aged 16 and over and who has registered can vote. Even though there is only one seat to fill, voters are asked to rank the candidates in order of preference, by writing 1, 2, 3, etc on the ballot paper, choosing as many or few as they like. Polling stations will be open on Thursday, June 26, from 7am until 10pm. The electronic counting of votes will take place on Thursday night, after the polls close. Conservative candidate Mark Hooley | supplied Conservative candidate Mark Hooley grew up in the Parkgrove area of the city, studied politics in Dundee and then lived in the US and in Holland. Currently he is studying for a MSc in Journalism at Edinburgh Napier University, lives in the ward and works for a large national bookmakers. He ran as a Conservative candidate in the Sighthill/Gorgie ward in the 2022 council elections. The theme of his campaign is 'back to basics' and he thinks that too much focus has been put on what he calls 'vanity projects' such as trams, cycle lanes, pedestrianisation of George Street and road closures, with the result that the day-to-day basics of potholes, road safety, residents' parking and graffiti. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad SNP candidate Murray Visentin | supplied SNP candidate Murray Visentin was born and raised in the ward and has lived in it his whole life and says he wants to become a voice for the community that shaped him. He is part of the leadership team at the big Asda off Slateford Road, where has has worked for 20 years. Just before the pandemic he was diagnosed with stage 4 throat cancer. He pulled through - thanks, he says, to aggressive treatment, a determined and positive mindset, and a lot of support. He says it changed how he sees life. He has been an activist for Scottish independence since he was 12 years old and believes every national and local issue we face would be better served in an independent country. Labour candidate Catriona Munro | supplied Labour candidate Catriona Munro has lived in south Edinburgh for over 25 years. Sh was a partner in one of Scotland's leading law firms, but has now retired from full-time practice. She has been an active member of the Labour Party throughout her adult life, first in London and for the last 25 years, in Edinburgh Southern. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad She says as a partner in a major law firm, she was a business owner and has extensive management experience at a senior level, as well as navigating through large organisations, dealing with and advising senior business people and interacting with various arms of government, advocating for clients and negotiating with opposing parties. Lib Dem candidate Kevin McKay | supplied Lib Dem candidate Kevin McKay has lived in Craiglockhart for the last 12 years. He is a member and the current treasurer of Craiglockhart Community Council. He is recently retired from work, having spent his career in the water industry tackling pollution issues, including through setting up his own business. He says if elected, he would join a City Chambers Lib Dem team fighting for road safety, investment in schools, and fixing our pavements and roads. Green candidate Q Manivannan | supplied Green candidate Q Manivannan is from the Tamil community and was born in India, making Scotland home since 2021. He has worked in the United Nations, in trade unions, voluntary organisations, and as an award-winning scholar in universities and won the Kavya Prize for Scottish writers of colour in 2023. He co-convenes the Palestine Solidarity Group for the Scottish Greens. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The Greens say Q would bring fresh new energy and new thinking to the City Chambers, together with a deep personal commitment to a kinder, caring politics that listens to people and communities. He names his priorities in the ward as road safety and traffic; tenants' rights and rents; and protecting green spaces. Full list of candidates Bonnie Prince Bob, Independent Derrick Emms, Independent Lukasz Furmaniak, Scottish Libertarian Party Mark Hooley, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Richard Crewe Lucas, Scottish Family Party Q Manivannan, Scottish Greens Kevin Joseph McKay, Scottish Liberal Democrats Catriona Munro, Scottish Labour Party Gary Neill, Reform UK Mark Rowbotham, Independent Murray Visentin, Scottish National Party (SNP) Steve Christopher West, Independent Marc Wilkinson, Independent
The Herald Scotland
an hour ago
- The Herald Scotland
Brexit revelations: A mandate for Labour to rejoin the EU?
This is, of course, no surprise, given Brexit was always the most foolish of ideas. And the damage from the particularly ill-judged Tory version involving loss of free movement of people between the UK and European Economic Area and the ending of frictionless trade with the country's largest trading partner was inevitably going to be enormous. YouGov observed as it published its latest poll on Brexit that Monday June 23 marked nine years since the UK voted to leave the European Union. It added: 'YouGov polling has long since shown that the public are 'Bregretful' about that outcome, with our latest survey showing 56% think it was wrong for Britain to vote to leave the EU.' There might still be the sounds of 'non, je ne Bregret rien' from those who voted for the folly. And some of those who led voters down the Brexit path continue to bump their gums rather noisily. However, the quieter majority clearly knows what is actually going on. YouGov's latest findings show, as its polls have for years now, a clear majority believes the UK was wrong to leave the EU. Only 31% now think the UK was right to leave. Interestingly, 68% of Leave voters still believe they made the right choice. Having said that, that is a long, long way away from 100%, signalling the penny has dropped for many. Most people in the UK want to see the country return to the EU - 56%. This is way ahead of the 34% opposing such a move, with 10% of those polled saying they do not know. While there is a clear majority for rejoining the EU, the proportion of Leave voters supporting the UK going back into the bloc is 24%. However, although such a move is desirable to only a minority of Leavers, it is surely interesting that nearly one-quarter of the Brexit voters of 2016 would support the UK being a member of the EU once again. For Tory and Reform UK voters, the respective proportions supporting the UK rejoining the EU are 28% and 16%. The first of these figures is perhaps surprisingly low, although it maybe reflects the extent to which the Conservative Party has been taken over by the Brexiters. The second seems surprisingly high given the policy stances of Reform UK and the fact that its leader, Nigel Farage, has been such a poster boy of the Brexit camp. One demoralising aspect of the YouGov poll is that - while there are clear overall majorities believing the UK was wrong to leave the EU and supporting a return to the bloc - the proportion thinking that rejoining is the right priority at the current time is outweighed by that which considers such a move to be the wrong priority at the moment. YouGov observed: 'While most Britons may support a return to the EU, they are less convinced that it is a priority at the current time. More than four in ten (44%) said attempting a 'Breturn' would be the wrong priority for the Government at the current time when balanced against the other issues the UK currently faces, compared to 37% who believe it would be the right priority.' That said, the breakdown on this is interesting. And it is perhaps one that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer should reflect on, given that his moves to rebuild ties with the EU are dispiritingly limited in scope, with Labour's 'red lines' embracing the key elements of the Tory hard Brexit: loss of frictionless trade and the ending of free movement. The most eye-catching aspect of the breakdown is that most people who voted for the Labour Government at last July's general election believe that rejoining the EU is the right priority at the current time. Read more YouGov noted: 'The majority of those who elected this Government last year say that rejoining the EU is the right priority (56%), as do similar numbers of Green (59%) and Lib Dem (55%) voters. Only between 25% [and] 30% of these voters think attempting to rejoin is the wrong priority at the current time.' It could easily be argued that Sir Keir, if he so wished, could take this majority view among those who voted for Labour at the last election as a mandate to pursue rejoining the EU, especially given there is overall support for such a move in the UK. What is more, the fact that 56% of those who voted for Labour last July consider rejoining the EU to be the right priority, right now, raises the question of why Sir Keir and his colleagues seem hell-bent on going along with the views of the minority in their policymaking. Labour has made it clear that it is absolutely intent on maintaining its 'red lines', a truly lamentable state of affairs. Another point worth making is that sometimes, when people are asked about priorities in polls generally, they seem to treat Brexit and the economy as two different things (albeit this is sometimes to do with the way the surveys are framed). It is a surreal situation. After all, rejoining the EU or even the European single market would give the UK a huge economic boost at a time when everyone seems to be getting in a lather about minuscule rises in long-term annual economic output from this or that trade deal. The recent free trade deal with India is a case in point, with Labour making something of a song and dance about a 0.1% boost to annual gross domestic product in the long run. You would not imagine people are going to feel that kind of boost in their living standards, which have come under so much pressure since the global financial crisis, with Brexit among the key factors in this misery. In stark contrast, if the economy and living standards and so forth are the priorities of people in the UK, then simple arithmetic and logic should dictate that rejoining the EU or at least the single market should also most definitely be a priority for them. Office for Budget Responsibility chairman Richard Hughes said in spring 2023 of Brexit's effect: 'We think that in the long run it reduces our overall output by around 4% compared with had we remained in the EU.' That loss is 40 times the forecast boost from the India trade deal. Given the noise from the Labour Government about the likes of the India trade deal, triumphalism which has in some ways been so reminiscent of the Tory Brexiters, the electorate could be forgiven for not realising just how colossally greater would be the boost from rejoining the single market or EU in economic terms. And it is not just about GDP – a more prosperous economy would obviously boost living standards after years in which growth has proven very hard to come by indeed. Sir Keir should surely take a long look at his own priorities, and take on board the views about the EU among the majority who voted him in, rather than paying disproportionate attention to, or pandering to, that rather noisy, entrenched Brexit camp.
