Rhoda Grant, Highlands and Islands regional Labour MSP, is joining the Shadow Health Secretary Cathy Jamieson in condemning the extent of the cuts facing NHS Highland.

A financial report for NHS Highland acquired through a freedom of information request has revealed that the level of savings budgeted for by NHS Highland until 2012 has risen from £16.8 million to £36.6 million.

The cut in money from the Government and pay increases, along with policy decisions like the cutting of car parking charges means that there will have to be a one percent target reduction across all the Board’s departments, a move described in the NHS plan as ‘difficult to achieve’.

The plan also comments: ‘There was an acknowledgement that efficiency savings alone would not be sufficient to address the deficit and as such this would mean consideration of issues that were previously thought to be ‘scary’ or ‘untouchable’."

Shadow Health Secretary Cathy Jamieson said:

"Health boards across Scotland are struggling to cope with the SNP’s poor budget settlement.

"We already know that NHS Greater Glasgow has been forced to find savings of £42 million.

"Now, we learn that to balance its books NHS Highland is considering cutting services previously regarded as 'untouchable'.

"I am appalled to learn that they are thinking about reducing emergency admissions and could make staff redundant.

"Nicola Sturgeon must take responsibility for these cuts and start providing the NHS with adequate resources."

Mrs Grant said: "The SNP in their election manifesto promised a major expansion of the Health Service, which was to be funded by efficiency savings in bureaucracy and backroom functions.

"The resources released were to be invested in frontline services.

"This has quite simply not happened and now frontline services to patients are threatened."

Mrs Grant continued, "We have already had the scrapping of car parking at hospitals in Scotland but this is to be paid out the health boards’ existing funds, again adding pressure to their budgets.

"The current situation means that a Finance (Savings Plan) for NHS Highland in the summer identified that the following areas and topics which would be looked at to achieve budgetary savings –

* Deliver a staff/ public reality check

* Reducing emergency admissions

A re-think of Out of Hours arrangements

A freeze on all recruitment

Look at building projects

Demand management

Look at beds, bodies and buildings

A review of posts

A review of the number of practices

* Reduce bed usage/ manage admissions."

"Unfortunately, this is not the full range but gives a flavour of what faces patients over the next few years in the NHS Highland area.

"A similar situation exists across Scotland, due to the under funding of our health services.

"I will be pursuing this issue in parliament to put pressure on the Health Minister to deliver appropriate funding in this vital sector."