Winter flu outbreak has revealed how badly the SNP is failing the NHS

It was the SNP’s job to ensure the NHS was ready for the annual winter flu outbreak. They have clearly failed

On Monday, the Chalmers Hospital in Aberdeenshire closed its doors to all new admissions and most visitors after a flu outbreak rampaged through the wards. It’s the latest casualty of what Public Health Scotland has called an “extraordinary” flu outbreak with hospital admissions caused by the disease surging 12 per cent in a week.

Covid may be the most notorious virus, but flu has claimed 71 lives in Scotland already in 2025, according to the National Records of Scotland – nearly four times the 18 reported in the same week last year.

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Scientists had to scramble to understand even the basics of how Covid, a novel virus, was transmitted, who was most vulnerable and how to develop a vaccine. Flu, though, is as predictable as mince pies and New Year’s Day hangovers, so why is our NHS struggling so much this year?

John Swinney, seen visiting Forth Valley Hospital, has said he is giving 'very personal leadership' to the NHS (Picture: Lesley Martin)John Swinney, seen visiting Forth Valley Hospital, has said he is giving 'very personal leadership' to the NHS (Picture: Lesley Martin)
John Swinney, seen visiting Forth Valley Hospital, has said he is giving 'very personal leadership' to the NHS (Picture: Lesley Martin) | PA

Vaccine conspiracy theories

Firstly, Scotland’s vaccination programmes are flagging on the SNP’s watch. While the majority of those over 65 took up their invite for a flu jab this winter, just a third of those between 18 and 64 who were deemed at risk, and just 16.1 per cent of social care workers did so.

Conspiracy theories no doubt played a part in putting Scots off from walking into clinics with their sleeves rolled up. But the reality is that there are more mundane reasons the SNP’s vaccination programme is failing.

A 2024 Public Health Scotland report investigating the fall in childhood immunisations noted that staffing issues played a role, as did delays to invitation letters, inaccurate data and unclear responsibilities. These are things the SNP can and should do more to tackle.

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Just as flu is more likely to ravage those who are already vulnerable, the chaos it has unleashed reveals how fragile the NHS has become. I warned this summer that, with A&E waiting times already higher than the previous year, the SNP needed to act swiftly to avoid unbearable winter pressures.

Hours lying on hospital floor

And yet, before winter had even officially started, NHS Grampian had declared a “critical incident”, diverting patients in ambulances to other hospitals. Just last week, I heard from a retired policeman in crippling pain who was forced to spend five-and-a-half hours lying on the floor because there were no beds available for him.

Hardworking NHS staff are keeping the health service going but they cannot shield the public from the SNP’s perma-crisis forever. The lesson of the pandemic is not that it was a unique event but that it is something we need to prepare for.

And while I sincerely hope we do not see another pandemic, one thing I can predict is that there will be another round of flu cases in the winter of 2025-6.

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This week, John Swinney finally accepted that Health Secretary Neil Gray was not managing and stepped in directly to take responsibility for the NHS. But the SNP’s real task was to ensure the NHS remained robust enough to take a winter flu wave in its stride.

This is the flu test – and the SNP has failed it.

Jackie Baillie is MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour’s deputy leader and her party’s spokesperson for health

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