Scotland

Seven health boards received £230m in bailout loans from the Scottish government last year, despite record levels of NHS funding.

The figures were revealed in the annual review of the NHS by spending watchdog Audit Scotland.

New analysis shows that in total, health boards have received just over £500m in bailout loans from the Scottish government in the last six years – and just £7m has been repaid.

Audit Scotland warned that the NHS was “not in a financially sustainable position” but the Scottish government said it was “making good progress” in transforming health services.

In its annual review of the NHS, the watchdog returned to a number of familiar themes from previous years – including increased patient demand, emergency care pressures and waiting times targets not being met.

Politically, when someone on your own side is comparing you to dog mess, you know something has gone wrong – especially when they’re doing it to try and be supportive.

It has been a difficult few weeks for Sir Keir Starmer and his government, with speculation about a leadership challenge followed by a chaotic run-up to the Budget, a period of damaging leaks and U-turns.

Earlier this week, the Times newspaper said that it had spoken to three Scottish Labour MPs who want to see the prime minister ousted before elections to the Scottish Parliament in May.

In anonymous comments, the MPs reportedly said they fear Labour will be “slaughtered” in those elections, in part thanks to the prime minister’s unpopularity.

In response, another Scottish Labour MP told the Daily Record newspaper, using colourful language, that claims of a plot were rubbish.

But in the process they admitted the prime minister was about as popular as something you wouldn’t like to step in while out for a walk.

So amid the briefing and counter-briefing, and with Starmer set to visit Scotland less than six months until Scots go to the polls, what really is the mood in the Scottish Labour contingent at Westminster?

Are they on the brink of revolt?

Scottish Labour MPs get together every two weeks or so. They last met on the day of the Budget, so they haven’t had the chance to discuss the latest negative press.

“When we do, colleagues are going to be pretty furious,” one member of the Scottish group told me.

“It just isn’t helpful to go around making out as if we’re going to get humped.”

While it might have been a point of tension between the Scottish party and UK government in the past, and came in the midst of a chaotic Budget, Scottish Labour MPs are pleased at finally being able to say the two-child benefit cap has been lifted.

But there’s no denying there’s plenty of unhappiness too.

In the past few weeks I have had Scottish Labour MPs describe the prime minister to me as “terrible” and the conduct of his government, particularly in terms of the chaotic briefings that surrounded last week’s budget, as “incompetent” and “mind-blowingly stupid”.

That is very different from wanting Starmer out, though.

Culturally and practically, it is difficult for Labour to get rid of its leader – and especially for Scottish Labour MPs.

In the party’s long history, Labour MPs have never formally challenged one of their sitting prime ministers, let alone ousted them.

That’s quite different from the Conservatives, who have held votes of confidence in two of their last three PMs. Liz Truss didn’t last long enough to face one.

And from a Scottish Labour perspective, the timing doesn’t make sense right now.

A party insider described talk of a leadership challenge before May to me as “politically inept”.

“Do they really want to use up all the time when the focus will finally be on the SNP’s record on a leadership contest?” they asked.

Cases of flu in Scotland have more than doubled in the space of a week.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) figures show that in the week of 24-30 November, lab-confirmed cases rose sharply to 1,759 compared to 845 the previous week.

Hospital admissions as a result of the illness also rose by 70%, from 426 to 724.

PHS said cases had reached medium activity levels, and that this comes two weeks earlier than in previous flu seasons.

Earlier this week, Health Secretary Neil Gray said Scotland was facing a “challenging” strain of the illness, but assured the public that there were adequate stocks of flu vaccine.

Experts warned at the start of November that the UK would have a long, drawn-out flu season and that a new variant of flu was spreading more easily.

Scotland’s flue season started earlier than usual with a sharp rise in mid-November.

Flu-like illness has now increased in all groups, but to a higher intensity in the younger age groups – ages one to four and five to 14.

However, about 40% of hospital admissions were people aged 65 and over – which PHS said was broadly consistent with previous flu seasons.

According to National Records of Scotland, there were 17 deaths provisionally registered with flu as the underlying cause and 21 where flu was mentioned on the death certificate.

Those figures, respectively, were 137 and 171 at the peak of the last winter flu season – most of which were people over the age of 80.

This week BBC Scotland News contacted all 14 health boards and 32 councils to find out about the impact of the flu spike on hospitals and schools.

Four councils responded – some noted that pupil absences were broadly in line with previous years, though East Lothian Council had a higher pupil absence rate compared to the same week last year.

Midlothian Council said its school staff absence rate was “high” for a variety of reasons including colds/flu.

More health boards responded, all broadly saying flu cases were higher this year, with some introducing ward restrictions or face coverings as precautions.

Glasgow’s health board has been telling patients to stay at home to treat themselves, and to avoid A&E when suffering mild or moderate flu symptoms.

Dumfries and Galloway’s medical director has also urged people not to visit hospitals, care homes, or other healthcare settings if they are unwell.