Holyrood 513 / 18 September 2023

HEALTH OF THE NATION ANNUAL SPECIAL
STUCK: Scotland’s health service enters its most challenging season mired in a backlog of mounting pressures

Also including: Interview with the new Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care, Michael Matheson; weighing up the costs of Obesity; and a look at the future applications of AI within the health service

3 Editor’s note: Ultimately Fergus Ewing’s dissent and the party’s response to it reveals how out of step with public opinion the SNP strategists and the hierarchy really are
5 Roundup : Pictures and numbers from the past two weeks
7 Talking Point: Consumption rooms cannot be seen as the only solution to drug deaths
8 In Context: Short-term lets licensing scheme
9 Political Spotlight: Six months later - As Humza Yousaf reaches six months in the top job, Holyrood reflects on his performance
14 Overview: Winter planning - Ahead of what promises to be another tough winter for the NHS, medics say a more long-term approach is needed
17 AI: Healthy intelligence - As AI applications make their way into the NHS over the next decade, will we experience a healthcare revolution?
22 Interview: Michael Matheson - The health secretary is thinking ahead to what the NHS will look like in decades to comes
28 Obesity: Weighing up the cost - Changing the food environment is vital for bringing down the nation’s weight
31 NHS: Whistling in the wind - In its failure to treat whistleblowers properly, the NHS is destined to repeat the same old mistakes
34 Programme For Government: The agenda - Holyrood examines the Scottish Government’s legislative programme and the commentary around it
36 Interview: Alexander Stewart - The Scottish Conservative MSP speaks about the early trauma that helped shape him
40 Getting to know... SNP MSP Alasdair Allan on his love of steamships
42 Event spotlight: Holyrood Garden Party and Political Awards
46 Comment: It’s time to dial down the rhetoric on short-term lets, says Andy Wightman
47 Local politics; Councillor Sonya Warren introduces us to her Buckie ward
48 Diary: Which MSP is hair stylist to our parliamentary stars?
49 Spin: Ruth Maguire MSP tells us what will get her on the dancefloor
50 Last Word: Sketch - Alex Cole-Hamilton fears he’s being watched

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