West Scotland MSP Jamie Greene said today that the rate of operations being cancelled in NHS Ayrshire and Arran was concerning.

New figures show that a total of 136 scheduled operations were cancelled by NHS Ayrshire and Arran between February and May this year, a rate of one operation a day – a sharp increase from January 2017 where only nine operations were cancelled due to capacity issues.

Mr Greene has said that the Scottish Government needs focusing its attention on getting healthcare right and stop focusing on independence.

Jamie Greene MSP commented: “At this crucial juncture, the Scottish Government needs to focus its attention on ensuring that healthcare is available to all Scots, this means dropping its obsession over independence and getting back to the job that it’s paid by the taxpayer to do.”

“136 operations cancelled in four months is too high and Nicola Sturgeon needs to address this immediately. The staff in NHS Ayrshire and Arran are some of the most dedicated and hardest-working in the country so it’s only right that they receive the proper support they deserve from the Scottish Government.”

“Patients in NHS Ayrshire and Arran rightfully expect to be able to receive their operations on time.”