NHS has spent more than £900m on temporary staff since 2019, figures suggest

The NHS has spent more than £900m on temporary consultants and nurses since 2019, new figures indicate.

Statistics released to Scottish Labour under freedom of information legislation suggest £921 million was spent between 2019-20 and September of last year on locum consultants and agency nursing staff.

The figures, according to the party, show the “huge pressure” the health service is under, but the Scottish Government said it represented a “tiny fraction” of the £10 billion staffing costs.

The consultant spend totalled £521.3 million, according to the figures, while the total for nurses was £400 million.

For nurses, spending was stable in 2019-20 and 2020-21 but spiked in the following years, including almost quadrupling, going from £39.7 million in 2019-20 to £152 million in 2023-24.

Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said: “These figures show the NHS is under huge pressure and is haemorrhaging money because of the SNP’s failure to recruit and retain frontline staff.

“After nearly 18 years of SNP incompetence, staff are demoralised and exhausted as vacancies are not being filled – and it’s costing the taxpayer millions.

“Scottish Labour will ensure that Scotland’s NHS has a 10-year workforce plan that creates domestic medical and nursing training places, values nurses, doctors and all NHS staff, and meets the needs of future generations of patients.

“Scotland’s NHS needs a new direction and Scottish Labour is ready to deliver it.”

Meanwhile, a Scottish Government spokesman said: “NHS Scotland’s staffing pay bill is over £10 billion a year, with spending on agency nursing a tiny fraction of this.

“The use of temporary staff in an organisation as large and complex as NHS Scotland will always be required to ensure vital service provision during times of unplanned absence, sickness and increased unforeseen activity.

“It is however critical that we seek to secure best value whenever we are delivering services within NHS Scotland, allowing us to maximise the impact that our investment has on the quality and availability of patient care.

“Accordingly, we are working with colleagues across NHS Scotland to explore how we can reduce our reliance on agency staffing.”