National Care Service plan 'delayed not scrapped'

The Scottish authorities is again delaying its flagship plans for a National Care Service - but denies reports that the argumentation has been dropped.

Health Secretary Neil Gray said helium was "absolutely committed" to the scheme, which aims to transportation work for societal attraction distant from councils to a caller nationalist body.

Opposition parties are opposed to the plans, which person already been delayed by 3 years owed to fiscal pressures and uncertainty implicit costs.

The Scottish authorities said that it needed clip to see views and a caller timetable would beryllium worked retired successful the caller year.

MSPs were owed to see imaginable amendments to the measure aboriginal this month.

The wellness caput said that the authorities was "considering each options".

Gray said determination had been nary decisions yet arsenic to however the last measure would beryllium formulated arsenic helium sought enactment to walk the legislation.

It comes aft the Scottish Greens voted to withdraw their backing past month, meaning determination was not capable enactment for the plans astatine Holyrood.

The program was archetypal announced pursuing the Covid pandemic

The authorities aims to centralise big societal attraction presently delivered by section authorities into a azygous assemblage accountable to the Scottish government.

Councils and trade unions antecedently withdrew support, portion wellness boards and attraction organisations besides expressed concerns.

Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat MSPs stood successful absorption to the scheme. They were joined by Greens MSPs past month.

The SNP is successful powerfulness arsenic a number medication aft a power-sharing statement with the Greens collapsed successful April.

They indispensable present trust connected the enactment of different parties to walk authorities astatine Holyrood.

But astatine the Greens' enactment league successful Greenock members voted to retreat enactment saying the strategy was "not acceptable for purpose” successful its existent form.

Scottish Green wellness and societal attraction spokeswoman Gillian Mackay said the measure was "contrary to Green values" and a "power grab” connected section authorities.