SCOTLAND’S NHS is streets ahead of the rest of the UK, consistently outperforming the other home nations on its progress towards meeting hospital waiting time targets.

Figures unearthed by a Scottish MP’s researchers showed that over the past two years, accident and emergency (A&E) departments in Scotland were regularly five percentage points ahead of England, 10 or more points ahead of Wales and more than 20 ahead of figures for Northern Ireland.

A separate set of statistics for Type 1/major emergency department sites – those that provide a consultant-led 24-hour service with full facilities for resuscitating patients – showed the gap between Scotland and the rest of the UK was even wider.

Both sets of data cover the period between July 2017 and July 2019, logging waiting times against a benchmark of 95% of patients having to wait no longer than four hours from arrival to admission, discharge or treatment. Health boards are working towards a target figure of 98%.

The A&E comparison showed Scotland regularly reaching the high 80s to low 90s, with its best performance in July 2017, when it registered 95.7% being taken care of within the four-hour target.

In the same month, England, Wales and Northern Ireland scored 90.3%, 83.8% and 80.7% respectively.

Scotland’s worst month was December the same year, when it reached only 85.1% of its target, compared to 85%, 79% and 67.7% for the other home nations.

However, that figure has been improving in Scotland, and in July this year it was 91.2%, compared to 86.5% in England and 77.4% in Wales.

The picture was similar when major emergency department sites were compared, with Scotland reaching 95.1% of its target in July 2017, almost 10 points ahead of England (85.5%), 15 ahead of Wales (79.3%) and 18 in front of Northern Ireland (77.3).

December that year saw Scotland’s worst performance of 83%, against England’s 77.3%, 74.4% in Wales and Northern Ireland’s 69.1%.

In July this year, Scotland reached 89.6% of target, England 78.9% and Wales 71.5%.

Dunfermline and West Fife SNP MP Douglas Chapman, whose staff carried out the research, said the results were not surprising.

He said: “While these statistics are impressive, they should come as no surprise as the Scottish Government continues to make investment and improvements in the provision of Scotland’s health care.

“Currently, the NHS in Scotland has higher staffing than in England and that is demonstrated by the number of GPs we have per head in Scotland of 92.1 per 100,000, while England has 73 per 100,000, Wales 70 and Northern Ireland 71.

“The Scottish Government will continue to increase the number of GPs, with a pledge of another 800 in the next decade.

“Not only is Scotland’s performance on waiting times better than the rest of the UK, but in other areas we continue to provide a better service. Overall, health spending is £1 billion higher when compared to England, and the Scottish Government will continue to increase funding in mental health and social care.

“Recent reports suggest that if the UK crashes out of the EU with No Deal and loses the benefits that the NHS reaps from being part of the single market and customs union then NHS England will face the ‘perfect storm’, which is bad news for patients and will put further pressure on England’s creaking NHS.”