Scottish Labour conference: Anas Sarwar to pledge scrapping of non-dom loophole to cut Scotland waiting lists

Anas Sarwar will deliver a keynote speech on Friday, on day one of the Scottish Labour conference

Money raised by a Labour UK government scrapping the non-dom tax loophole will be used to cut waiting lists in Scotland, Anas Sarwar will say.

At the first day of the Scottish Labour conference in Glasgow on Friday, Mr Sarwar will vow the party will fund 160,000 new appointments each year.

In October, Sir Keir Starmer set out a plan to fund more NHS appointments by using £1.5 billion from scrapping the non-dom tax status. Scottish Labour says this will result in £134 million of additional health spending in Scotland.

Anas Sarwar will vow to put the money saved from closing the non-dom tax loophole into helping to cut waiting times. Picture: John Devlin

Mr Sarwar will say he will spend “every penny” of this in Scotland’s NHS with a focus on tackling waiting lists, with the money projected to generate the equivalent of 160,000 appointments for diagnostics and procedures each year. Scottish Labour’s three-day conference begins in Glasgow on Friday.

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Mr Sarwar is expected to say: “Every Scottish seat matters, every Scottish vote matters. Because by voting Scottish Labour, Scotland can be at the heart of the next UK Labour government.

“Scotland’s got a choice, and the SNP wants Scotland to settle for sending a message. Well I want Scotland to send a government.”

Mr Sarwar will say that “every single public institution has been left weaker” then when the SNP came to power 17 years ago, and there are now 830,000 Scots on waiting lists in the NHS.

He will add: “We will put fairness back at the heart of everything we do. That is why a UK Labour government will scrap the non-dom tax loophole.

“It means more money can be invested in nurses and consultants in our NHS. Right now, waiting times in Scotland are at a record level.

“Closing the non-dom tax loophole will deliver £134m every year in Barnett funding for Scotland. Today I commit a future Scottish Labour government to investing every penny of that in our NHS to increase capacity and drive down waiting lists.

“That will deliver the equivalent of 160,000 more NHS appointments every single year. That is what change means. That is why change matters.”