Image copyright Getty Images

The proportion of outpatients waiting longer than the government's 12-week target to be seen by a specialist has risen slightly in the past year.

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman previously set a goal of 80% of patients to be seen within the timescale by this October.

However, official figures show only 72.9% of cases met the target.

NHS Scotland also failed to meet targets for treatment of inpatients and day cases.

That success rate of 71.3% was down from a year ago, and well below the health secretary's plan for 100% of patients to be treated within 12 weeks in two years' time.

Ms Freeman launched the Waiting Times Improvement Plan last October.

She has said it aimed to direct "more than £850m of investment to substantially and sustainably improve waiting times in the face of rising demand".

'Improve access'

Ms Freeman said the investment would see "phased and sustained improvement over the period to spring 2021, with the aim that no patient will wait more than the waiting-times standards and guarantees".

Speaking in the Holyrood magazine in September, the health secretary added: "As a government, we are investing in redesigning services to improve access for patients.

"I am determined that waiting times for outpatient and inpatient appointments will be reduced.

"This government is absolutely committed to ensuring that all waiting-times standards and guarantees are met and that patients have confidence that they will receive swift and safe access to the range of NHS services that are clinically appropriate for them."