The future of the NHS should be the top priority at this election instead of arguments about the constitution, Anas Sarwar has said.
The Scottish Labour today said he would push for "world class" cancer treatment services to be offered to patients as the health service deals with a huge backlog in cases caused by months of lockdown.
An estimated 7,000 people in Scotland are believed to be living with undiagnosed cancer as a result of the pandemic’s impact on services, such as suspension of life-saving breast, cervical and bowel screenings.
Cancer overtook covid as a leading cause of death in Scotland earlier this month.
Sarwar's party wants to implement an NHS recovery plan that is focused on clearing the backlog in cancer treatment by increasing screening capacity, reducing delays for screenings, and ensuring that by the end of the parliament every patient receives their diagnosis and starts treatment within two weeks.
The SNP has pledged to to increase NHS frontline spending by over £2.5 billion over the course of the next parliament - some of which will go on wage rises for hard-working staff.
The Scottish Government has already started its own cancer recovery plan which aims to ensure patients continue to have equitable access to care in Scotland, regardless of where they live.
But Sarwar believes this doesn't go far enough and wants parties to focus on improving health care instead of "five more years of division".
He said: “At this election, building a world class cancer care system is on the ballot. But to do that we must be focused on our national recovery.
"Right now there are thousands of people in Scotland who have cancer, but don’t know about it.
“We came into this pandemic with an under-funded NHS. The Tories would rather take us back to constitutional arguments, while the SNP’s poor track-record on cancer goes unchallenged.
“A distracted government and an incompetent opposition has meant when it comes to cancer care Nicola Sturgeon has taken her eye off the ball.
“That’s why cancer care is at the heart of Scottish Labour's NHS recovery plan. I want to see our NHS not only restored to pre-pandemic levels, but see it strengthened and our workforce reinvigorated.
“The SNP cannot be relied on to prioritise recovery because it has already made clear that it will prioritise a referendum."
But the SNP today said Scottish Labour needed to “get off the fence” on vital issues facing Scotland as the party fails to stand up to the Tories in Westminster.
SNP Depute Leader Keith Brown said: “We can see from Westminster that Labour are completely unable to stand up to the Tories and to keep Scotland safe.
“The Tories in Westminster are doing whatever they like, and Labour simply are not doing anything to stop them.
“Scotland needs experienced leadership that will keep Scotland safe not sit out difficult decisions and choices.
“Instead of standing up and protecting the jobs, incomes and rights that families in Scotland depend upon, they are happy to stand by and watch as senior Tory ministers’ plan cuts to vital public services and launch a power grab on our Scottish Parliament.
"That silence speaks volumes about Scottish Labour's priorities."
