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THE NHS in Scotland have spent nearly £100million of public money on sending patients for private treatments since 2011, it was revealed yesterday.

The figure will cause huge embarrassment to Alex Salmond , who said three years ago that the private sector had been “eradicated” in Scotland’s NHS. Figures released to the Daily Record show that since the First Minister’s pledge, NHS spending on private care has soared – leading to huge profits for care firms such as Bupa.

And the number of NHS patients sent for private operations to avoid falling foul of waiting list targets has risen by 472 per cent over the same three-year period.

The reliance on private care for routine procedures such as hip operations is in stark contrast to Salmond’s remarks in the run-up to the 2011 Holyrood election.

He declared then on BBC1’s Question Time: “We’re going back to the founding principles of the NHS. We’ve eradicated the private sector from the NHS.”

More than 12,800 patients were referred to private hospitals and clinics for treatment last year, compared with 2239 in 2011-12, a rise of 472 per cent.

A large slice of the cash goes to already well-paid NHS consultants who work in the private sector in their spare time doing operations NHS hospitals don’t have time to carry out.

Salmond and the SNP have made the NHS a focus of the independence campaign , promising that a written constitution would legally guarantee the NHS remains in public hands after a Yes vote.

His opponents accuse him of scare-mongering about a threat of creeping privatisation after a No vote when health is already controlled by Holyrood.

Scottish Labour health spokesman Neil Findlay said: “The SNP are guilty of the worst kind of scare stories on our NHS. The NHS are completely devolved to Scotland. It’s Alex Salmond and his government who are responsible for failings in our hospitals.

“ Despite claiming he’d eradicate the private sector from the NHS , nearly five times as many patients are being referred to the private sector under this SNP government.”

The referral figures emerged in a series of freedom of information requests to health boards in Scotland.

The highest number was in NHS Lothian, who referred 9498 patients to private hospitals in Glasgow and Edinburgh last year compared with 758 in 2011,a 1153 per cent rise.

In the past three years, more than £94.2million has been paid to private health carers to treat NHS patients. Annual spending in that time has risen by 57 per cent from £22.8million to £35.8million

A quarter of patients were treated in private facilities outside their health board area, with the NHS often paying travel and accommodation costs as well as their treatment.

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One patient, referred by NHS Grampian to Ross Hall Hospital in Glasgow to avoid a 36-week wait for a scan on an injured joint, ran up almost £500 in train fares.

The highest spending health authority on private treatment last year was NHS Lothian, who spent £10.3million, compared with £3.1million in 2011-12.

The biggest rise in spending was in Grampian, who paid private facilities £3.1million to treat NHS patients last year, compared with 373,000 in 2011-12.

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NHS Lanarkshire ran up a bill of £4.2million last year that included £1.1million referring patients to Ross Hall and £705,000 with Nuffield Health.

The figure includes £375,000 for treatment to eight patients at Huntercombe Hospital in Maidenhead, Berkshire, a unit for the treatment of mental illness and brain injuries, as well as £959,000 on eight patients with Shaw Healthcare, who specialise in the treatment of the elderly and dementia sufferers.

Forth Valley referred 1545 referred patients last year, compared with 166 in 2011-12, while Greater Glasgow & Clyde NHS referred 989 patients, compared with 191 three years ago.

Rising spending on private treatment comes as NHS boards struggle to meet Government waiting times targets.

But since most of the doctors carrying out the private operations are NHS employees working in their time off, critics say it would be cheaper to get the work done where it is supposed to be done – in NHS hospitals and clinics.

SNP insiders say the NHS will be at the forefront of the Yes campaign’s drive to convince undecided voters between now and the referendum on September 18.

At Holyrood yesterday, Health Minister Alex Neil said: “The way to absolutely guarantee it is to write the founding principles of the NHS into an independent Scotland’s constitution and build it into the ethos of this parliament so that nobody by accident or design can privatise our health service.”

But he ruled out using parliament powers to raise tax to help support the service as“unacceptable”.

The Daily Record asked Neil a series of questions about the use of private health providers by the NHS and why it is happening.

He said in reply: “This involves using public money to treat patients free at the point of need – unlike the moves towards wholesale privatisation and increased use of patient charging in the health service in England, which threaten the funding available for Scotland’s NHS.

“Only a Yes vote in the referendum will protect Scotland’s NHS from Tory-led Westminster cuts – that is just one reason why so many people are backing an independent Scotland and why the Yes vote is increasing by the day.”

He said the money spent on private care represented one per cent of the overall Scots NHS budget.

Dr Willie Wilson, of NHS for Yes, said: “A Yes vote, with the full powers of independence, offers us our one opportunity to secure Scotland’s health service - to protect it from Westminster cuts.”

HEALTH Q & A

1 Isn’t the NHS already devolved?

Yes. The operation of the health service in Scotland has been wholly controlled in Edinburgh since 1999. However, the overall budget of the NHS is allocated to the Scottish Parliament from Westminster through the Barnett formula.

This gives a share of NHS health spending in England to Scotland.

2 So why has this become an issue now?

Alex Salmond has made protecting the NHS the top issue of the independence debate in recent weeks. The First Minister claims the privatisation of services in England will have a knock-on effect north of the border.

The claims have angered unionists who have branded them scaremongering.

3 What is the impact of privatisation in England?

Labour’s shadow health secretary Andy Burnham has been fiercely critical of the UK Government’s privatisation agenda.

Private companies, including Virgin Care and Care UK, received more than £10billion of public money last year.

In a speech last month, Burnham said: “When did the British public ever give their consent for this? It is indefensible for the character of the country’s most valued institution to be changed in this way without the public being given a say.”

4 Has there been privatisation in Scotland?

Yes. About one per cent of NHS services in Scotland are now delivered by private companies, compared with six per cent in England. This is in stark contrast to Alex Salmond’s claim to have “eradicated” private provision. The Daily Record today reveals more than 12,800 patients were referred to private hospitals and clinics for treatment last year, compared with 2239 in 2011-12, a rise of 472 per cent.

5 Will the NHS budget be cut in Scotland?

No. Despite Salmond’s insistence privatisation down south would lead to cuts in the budget here there is no evidence to support this.

Even when private firms are used to deliver health services the cost is still covered by the public purse.

Spending on England’s NHS is scheduled to increase from £105.6billion in 2013-14 to £110.4billion in 2015-16 – that means Scotland’s funding will increase too.