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Daily Mail​

Cash-strapped NHS has had to foot the £12million bill for the SNP's public inquiries

The bill for long-running public inquiries has cost Scotland's beleaguered NHS more than £12 million in the past four years alone, figures show. National Services Scotland (NSS), the administrative arm of NHS Scotland, admitted that it has had to fork out £9 million in legal fees and £3.1 million in staff costs since 2021 to respond to inquiries that include the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry and the Covid-19 probe. Holyrood's finance committee is currently assessing if the number of public inquiries held in Scotland is value for money. The SNP 's Kenneth Gibson, who chairs the committee, has raised fears about the £100 million bill for the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry, as it emerged that the total cost of all Scottish inquiries since 2007 has now ballooned to £230 million. Meanwhile, the probe into disgraced NHS Tayside surgeon Sam Eljamel has cost £1 million before the inquiry has even begun, official records show. The enormous cost to the NHS to respond to inquiries and defend its actions in some instances comes despite huge waiting lists and a GP crisis – and last night critics said the money could be better spent. Scottish Conservative health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said: 'Taxpayers will be appalled that the NHS has splashed out £9 million on legal fees. 'This is money that could have been spent cutting A&E waiting times or boosting the number of GP appointments available for patients. 'The sheer number of inquiries taking place speaks volumes about how the SNP are failing Scotland. 'On their watch no ministers or senior figures are ever held accountable for their mistakes. 'That leaves too many left without answers as to why failure has become so routine after 18 years of this SNP government letting down our NHS.' According to a submission to the Holyrood committee by NSS, the NHS in Scotland has spent £3.1 million since 2021/22 in responding to public inquiries. Meanwhile, Scotland's Central Legal Office has provided around £9 million in legal services to NHS Scotland boards for public inquiries since 2021, which includes the cost of counsel. The scale of the outlay has led NSS chief executive Mary Morgan to suggest that an independent advisory board should be set up to avoid spiralling costs to the public purse. She wrote: 'NSS suggests that the current processes for monitoring public inquiry costs are inadequate. Costs are significant.' She added: 'Costs are incurred by each participant to an inquiry. 'Costs are not reimbursed or reported consistently. There is no oversight of costs incurred. 'Public bodies involved in an inquiry incur costs to prepare for and participate in inquiries (including paying for staff time from the public body and legal representation). 'It may be helpful for inquiries to set out what costs should be recorded by participants and arrange for those to be reported to the inquiry and shared publicly on a regular basis (e.g. quarterly) to ensure that there is a consistent approach to providing information. 'NSS suggests that the independent advisory body could have a role in assessing and monitoring costs. Tight terms of reference are essential when a public inquiry is established to ensure value for money.'