Almost £40million has been spent on removing clinical waste from hospitals since a scandal revealed a contractor was not storing material – including body parts – properly.
Lanarkshire-based Healthcare Environmental Services (HES) lost its NHS contracts 18 months ago when it was revealed that waste was piling up at sites.
Owner Garry Pettigrew blamed the lack of incineration facilities. HES later ceased trading.
In May last year, we revealed that taxpayers were being charged more than twice as much for medical waste to be removed from hospitals after the collapse of the firm.
HES removed waste from every hospital, GP surgery, dental practice and pharmacy in Scotland, as well as some NHS trusts in England.
NHS National Services Scotland yesterday said the increased costs are down to Covid-19 and “market disruption”.
But Tory health spokesman Miles Briggs said the spiralling cost for waste disposal was “another example” of “mismanagement” under the SNP.
A Scottish Government spokesman said a transition from the “agreed contingency” to a new contractor is under way and is expected to be completed by the end of the summer.
