Spike in Nursing and Midwifery vacancies since 2011

New analysis of official figures carried out by Scottish Labour shows there were 615.7 vacancies in 2011 compared to 2789.2 at September 2017.

The Royal College of Nursing warned at the time the cut 'risks there not being enough professionally qualified nurses graduating to meet the demand for health services in the future'.

Labour health spokesman Anas Sarwar said: 'When Nicola Sturgeon decided to slash training places for nurses and midwives, she claimed it was a sensible decision.

'Instead that generation of students graduate to a health service that has seen the number of unfilled posts soar every year since.

'During that period, nurses - along with the wider public sector workforce - have faced a pay restraint policy which has forced staff out of the profession or into private agencies.

'Our hospitals simply don't have enough staff - and that is a consequence of decisions made by Nicola Sturgeon when she was health secretary.

'It was a spectacular error of judgment that has piled the pressure on our hospitals, and let patients down.

'Labour has established a Workforce Commission to develop a blueprint to fix the staffing crisis in our health service.'

A Scottish Government spokesman said a 10.8% increase in student nursing and midwifery intakes for 2018/19 was the sixth successive annual rise, and would provide 364 extra places and take the total to 3,700.

He said: 'Our commitment to supporting and sustaining the workforce also includes widening access to training, attracting back former registrants and, unlike England, we have retained bursaries and free tuition for nursing and midwifery students.

'We are also committed to creating an estimated 2,600 new training places over this parliament, recruiting and retaining the next generation of staff as well as enshrining safe staffing in law and placing our innovative nursing and midwifery workload tools on a statutory footing.'