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There is an extensive programme of work already in progress to support NHS Boards to reduce waiting times for all planned care procedures, including cataract surgeries.

This year, we have allocated more than £110 million to health boards to help tackle the longest waits for procedures and operations and this includes an investment of more than £12 million for ophthalmology.

The Centre for Sustainable Delivery’s (CfSD) National Eyecare Workstream also works with Scottish Government to support optometrists in the care for patients with cataract. In January 2022, we commissioned CfSD to establish the Scottish National Cataract Short Life Working Group to address current challenges in cataract surgery in Scotland.

This multi-professional group co-developed an agreed set of principles for delivering higher volume cataract surgery in operating theatres on a sustainable basis and assist in future proofing cataract services.

This work has led to the publication of Improving the Delivery of Cataract Surgery in Scotland: a Blueprint for Success which can be accessed here: https://www.nhscfsd.co.uk/media/5sofmknr/cataract-surgery-blueprint-2022.pdf.

Cataract surgery remains one of the most frequently performed surgical interventions across NHS Scotland. However, our health service has experienced unprecedented pressures over the past few years including the long-term impacts of the pandemic, seasonal and staffing pressures and unprecedented levels of inflation across the public sector. This has inevitably disrupted the NHS’s ability to carry out routine procedures, meaning longer waits for many patients.

The Scottish Government is committed to delivering reductions in waiting times, and has this year allocated an additional £12 million funding to NHS Boards for ophthalmology services.

The number of ophthalmology trainees recorded as of July 28, 2025, and from 2015 has been provided in the following table.

The Scottish Government recognises that long waits can have an impact on health and wellbeing. Waiting well | NHS inform on NHS Inform provides patients with information to support their health and wellbeing while waiting for health and social care services. This includes information on physical and mental health, as well as advice about practical issues like money worries.

We know many people are still waiting too long and this is not good enough. We are determined do more and our Budget will provide a record £21.7 billion for health and social care, with more than £110 million allocated to health boards to help tackle the longest waits for procedures and operations.

The funding has been assigned to specialty areas for the year ahead where it can have the greatest impact against the longest waits. This includes more than £12 million for ophthalmology.

The Scottish Government has confirmed that the replacement of the Edinburgh eye pavilion is a strategic priority, and the 2025-26 Budget provides the necessary funding to allow the development of the business case.

NHS Lothian has been asked to progress the business case and development of the design and timeline will form part of this work, which will take time. During an update to stakeholders in March, NHS Lothian advised an estimated timeline of 6 years.

It is usual for the business case process, construction and commissioning to take a number of years and there will be greater clarity on timeline once the business case process is complete.

I have met with all NHS Boards to discuss long waits across all planned care specialities including ophthalmology.

I understand that the Royal College of Ophthalmologists has recently written to Stephen Kinnock MP, Minister of State for Care, calling for a review into the use and oversight of independent sector providers for NHS-funded cataract surgery in NHS England.

NHS Scotland continues to make best use of existing NHS resources and capacity. Our National Treatment Centres (NTC) programme provides additional protected elective capacity and infrastructure for ophthalmic activity and a number of Health Boards also have additional cataract slots at Golden Jubilee National Hospital.

While NHS Scotland makes limited use of the independent sector, in certain circumstances limited use of alternative providers, including independent sector providers, may be required in response to capacity constraints.

The Scottish Government commissioned Centre for Sustainable Delivery (CfSD) is working with NHS Boards to ensure that they are able to continually identify new ways to increase capacity, and to respond to demand through service innovation and redesign.

In January 2022, Scottish Government commissioned CfSD to establish the Scottish National Cataract Short Life Working Group. This multi-professional group developed a 'Blueprint for Success' to deliver higher volume cataract surgery in operating theatres across Scotland; the aim being to deliver a minimum of 8 procedures per core 4-hour session or a minimum of one procedure every 30 minutes. The adoption of these minimum standards to deliver higher volume activity will reduce variation and waiting times for planned care across NHS Scotland.

The Blueprint for Success can be accessed here: https://www.nhscfsd.co.uk/media/5sofmknr/cataract-surgery-blueprint-2022.pdf

Furthermore, our additional investment of £110 million in 2025-26 has been targeted to specialty areas and NHS Boards where it can have the greatest impact against the longest waits, including for ophthalmology.

Finally, Our National Treatment Centres (NTC) programme provides additional protected elective capacity and infrastructure for ophthalmic activity. NTC capacity is a national resource and allocations are based on the latest Waiting Times management information available to Scottish Government at the time of decision. This approach ensures the NTCs are targeting the longest waiting patients that meet the clinical criteria for NTCs and allocations of activity have been determined on this basis.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) uses the national waiting times data mart to collect electronic patient records covering the waits that patients experience waiting for treatment as an inpatient or day case under the Treatment Time Guarantee. This data source can be used routinely to identify the specialty of treatment. However, although the records are designed to collect coded information on the procedure that is planned for the patient, this information is often either incomplete, lacking in essential detail and/or its accuracy cannot be assured. In addition, for patients who have completed their wait the procedures that was planned may not always reflect the procedure actually performed after they were admitted for treatment. The latter is not captured through the national data mart. Consequently, PHS is not currently able to report accurately on waiting times to this level of detail.

More detailed information on the procedures that is planned or undertaken for a patient will be held locally by NHS boards.

The Scottish Government is responsible for setting the strategic policy direction for NHS Scotland and its workforce. Operational matters, including the staffing of individual services, are the responsibility of each NHS Scotland Health Board.

At a local level, the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019 places duties on Health Boards to ensure that at all times suitably qualified and competent individuals are working in such numbers as are appropriate for the health, wellbeing and safety of patients, the provision of high-quality care and the wellbeing of staff.

The Scottish Government works with a stakeholder group (which includes NHS Education for Scotland, the British Medical Association, the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges and various Health Board representatives including regional workforce planners) to undertake annual reviews of the number of specialty training places (for resident doctors) needed across all specialties in order to meet anticipated future service demand and consultant need.

Workforce statistics, including statistics on certain roles within ophthalmology services across NHS Scotland, can be found at: NHS Scotland workforce | Turas Data Intelligence.