No compulsory redundancies from health board cuts - Swinney

The first minister has promised his plans to reduce the number of health boards in Scotland will not result in compulsory redundancies.

John Swinney would not be drawn on the scale of job losses likely following his proposals to cut the number of territorial boards from 14 to two.

He told BBC's Radio Scotland Breakfast he would "work collaboratively" with trade unions on a reform programme that will mean a reduction in public sector jobs.

Swinney said: "I will maintain the no compulsory redundancy commitment. There is no question about that in my mind."

The pledge came after Matt McLaughlin, head of health at the union Unison Scotland, said officials would be pressing ministers to ensure the NHS redundancy commitment was honoured.

The plans for reforming the shape and size of the health service in Scotland were set out by Swinney in his programme for government speech on Tuesday.

There are currently 11 mainland health boards, a number that would be cut to two strategic boards in the proposals. Details have yet to be confirmed for what happens with the Shetland, Orkney and Western Isles boards.

The first minister said his proposals would free up more time and capacity for treatment.

On the issue of job losses, Swinney told Radio Scotland Breakfast: "I have said that for all the time I have been first minister that there will be a need for public sector employment to fall.

"I have to live in the realities of the financial situation we face but I also need to ensure that we deliver sustainable services and improvements in services to members of the public."

He highlighted the expansion of the hospital at home service and said a family recently told him it was of "enormous benefit".

Swinney would not be drawn on the scale of job losses but said the NHS's no compulsory redundancy commitment was an "essential part" of the reforms.

He added the health service had to be redesigned to reflect the fact that people were living longer.

Swinney told the programme: "That means change. That means doing things differently but it will always be done with patients at the heart and with good dialogue with patients and staff."

The first minister said he wanted people to have "equal access to the health service" but the administrative arrangements of health boards "put obstacles in the way of doing that".

Earlier this week, NHS boards were told that caring for patients in corridors is "unacceptable", under new Scottish government plans to clear bottlenecks in hospitals.

Swinney also told the programme he wanted to create a "seamless service" for social care as the current system has "too many lines of accountability".

This would involve the NHS rather than councils having control, in a bid to reduce delayed discharge.

His proposals will not necessarily affect the operation of the national health boards that run the Scottish ambulance service or those that provide procurement and other support to the NHS.

Final decisions will only be taken after consultation.

Scottish Labour's acting leader Dame Jackie Baillie welcomed plans to reduce the number of health boards, a move she has been advocating for more than a decade.

She told Radio Scotland Breakfast that there had been "huge institutional clutter" between health boards, special boards and health and social care partnerships.

Baillie said: "I welcome the simplification but it needs to be accompanied by a focus on primary care, preventative services and social care delivered in our community."

Swinney's speech on Tuesday also revealed the number of Scotland's councils could be reduced in a bid to help them operate more sustainably.

There are currently 32 local authorities, but the first minister would not be drawn on how many he believes there should be.

He said he wanted to work with local government to have a range of larger councils that are "strategic in their nature".

He wants them able to undertake "sophisticated challenges" in areas such as public protection and the delivery of social work interventions.

Swinney added that he wanted local communities to feel they have "much more control over their lives".

The first minister's speech focussed on reform of the public sector to save money, cut bureaucracy, and improve how services are delivered.

The SNP leader set out a range of policies aimed at growing the economy, eradicating child poverty, transitioning to net zero and addressing "the epidemic of violence against women and girls".

In the SNP's election manifesto it pledged to compel large supermarkets to limit the cost of essential items - such as milk, eggs, cheese and rice - to ease the cost of living.

The document published alongside Swinney's speech on Tuesday, confirmed there will be legislation to introduce "price ceilings on some essential food items".

Business groups have warned the first minister the proposed food price cap will be "ineffective".

And Michelle Ferguson, the head of CBI Scotland told Radio Scotland Breakfast it was a "really bad piece of policy".

Swinney would not be drawn on whether or not he has had legal advice confirming the plan, which is now out for consultation, is compliant with the Internal Market Act.

Defending the policy, he said: "I went through an election campaign earlier this year in which members of the public told me in literally every single conversation how tough circumstances were."

Swinney also said he was addressing the cost-of-living crisis by capping bus fares in the west of Scotland at £2.

The move takes effect from Monday for journeys in Glasgow, Renfrewshire, Ayrshire, Dunbartonshire, Lanarkshire and Inverclyde.