Latest news with #NHSBoards
The National
10-07-2025
- Business
- The National
Minister pans 'nonsense' Tory claim SNP are punishing Unionist voters
David Mundell, the MP for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale, and Tweeddale and a former Scottish secretary, said during Scotland Questions at Westminster on Wednesday that the SNP has 'cynically and systematically deprived funding from areas that do not support independence', such as the Scottish Borders and Dumfries and Galloway. In response, Scottish Secretary Ian Murray claimed 'the whole of Scotland voted against independence in 2014' and accused the SNP of 'starving' the country's public services. Public Finance Minister Ivan McKee has hit back at Mundell's claims calling them 'completely false'. READ MORE: Ross Greer calls for Scotland to pivot towards wealth taxation 'These claims are total nonsense and completely false. The needs-based formula used to distribute the funding available for local government is agreed with Cosla on behalf of all 32 local authorities each year,' he said. "The Scottish Government has provided councils with a record £15 billion this year, a real terms increase of 5.5%. 'In 2025-26, NHS Boards will receive increased investment in their baseline funding, bringing total investment to over £16.2 billion.'' The Conservatives have previously faced their own allegations of 'pork-barrel politics' – where Tory-supporting areas are given more government support than opposition-supporting ones in a bid to shore up votes. Writing in 2020 of Boris Johnson's 'Towns Fund', professor of politics Chris Hanretty said: 'There is robust evidence that ministers chose towns so as to benefit the Conservatives in marginal Westminster seats.' In 2023, the SNP also raised concerns that levelling up funding in Scotland had disproportionately gone to Tory-supporting areas. Dumfries and Galloway council is currently controlled by the SNP, after the Tory administration collapsed before a no-confidence vote in June. The Scottish Borders council is also controlled by the Conservatives. In May, the Accounts Commission warned that all of Scotland's councils were facing a combined budget shortfall of £647 million in 2025/26. 'Whilst councils have partly met this shortfall through service savings and increased charges for services, continuing to use reserves and make one-off savings isn't sustainable,' the commission said.
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Business Standard
17-06-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Mastek share price up 3% on bagging contract from NHS England; details here
Mastek shares gained in trade today after the company announced it has secured a contract from NHS England to provide cybersecurity training for NHS Boards and Senior Information Risk Owners (SIROs). SI Reporter New Delhi Mastek share price: IT company Mastek share price rose as much as 2.90 per cent to hit an intraday high of ₹2,570.15 per share on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. Around 10:25 AM, Mastek shares were trading 1.22 per cent higher at ₹2,528.10 per share. In comparison, BSE Sensex was trading 0.24 per cent lower at 81,597.09 levels. Why did Mastek share price rise in trade today? Mastek shares gained in trade today after the company announced it has secured a contract from NHS England to provide cybersecurity training for NHS Boards and Senior Information Risk Owners (SIROs). The training will be delivered in partnership with Templar Executives, Mastek said, in a statement. 'We are delighted to be partnering with Mastek to deliver training assured by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). With the growing integration of healthcare services, our tailored approach and experience encourages Boards and executives to take accountability for cyber and information risk, alongside clinical and financial risk, to deliver quality patient care,' said Rekha Babber, MD Cyber Academy, Templar Executives. The training will focus on equipping these critical leaders with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively manage cyber risks, ensure compliance with legislation, and foster a culture of cyber resilience within their organisations. 'We are happy to expand our support into NHS England in building stronger cybersecurity leadership across the NHS. As healthcare systems continue to become more digital, effective cyber governance at the Board level is essential to safeguarding patient data and ensuring the resilience of critical services,' said Abhishek Singh, President of UKI & Europe at Mastek. The training includes two core components: SIRO Training, which targets SIROs and Deputy SIROs to help them manage cyber risks more effectively; and Board Training, which is designed to improve executive boards' understanding of cybersecurity governance, leadership responsibilities, and regulatory compliance. The partnership with NHS England highlights the company's focus on enabling secure healthcare services in an increasingly digital environment, Mastek said. About Mastek Mastek is a global provider of enterprise AI, digital, and cloud services that help clients generate measurable and sustainable returns on their technology investments. With a presence in over 40 countries and a workforce of more than 5,000 professionals, Mastek serves over 400 active customers across key sectors such as Public Sector, Healthcare, Retail, Manufacturing, Higher Education, and Financial Services. The company partners with leading technology platforms including Oracle, Salesforce, Microsoft, AWS, Snowflake, and Databricks to deliver innovative solutions tailored to evolving business needs.
The Herald Scotland
23-04-2025
- Health
- The Herald Scotland
Call to allow private donor eggs in NHS-funded IVF
He said he, his partner and their surrogate had been told there is a 30-year wait for donor gametes through the health service. READ MORE: However, campaigners raising concerns around surrogacy argue that those purchasing eggs from private fertility clinics should 'not seek a discount on embryo creation and implantation at the expense of the Scottish taxpayer". Currently, NHS Boards are expected to meet the needs of eligible couples requiring donor gametes. But the Scottish Government maintains that couples eligible for NHS fertility treatment should not pay for any aspect of it. According to the government, the wait time for an altruistic egg donor through the NHS can be between three to four years. However, if a couple uses eggs from a known donor, the treatment timeframe is similar to those using their own gametes—approximately eight to nine months. In the UK, egg donation is altruistic and it is illegal to pay donors directly, although they may receive compensation. It is legal, however, to purchase donor eggs from abroad via UK or international egg banks or agencies. Calls for Government to look again at IVF rulesWhile gametes from those sources must meet UK safety and quality standards, a briefing prepared for MSPs by the Scottish Parliament's Information Centre notes 'risks associated with sourcing eggs abroad and with their transportation". In the background information to his petition, Mr Connolly said the fertility clinic at Glasgow Royal Infirmary had recently told him, his surrogate, and his fiancé that the likelihood of getting eggs via the NHS was 'minuscule". He added: 'The NHS in Scotland operates on an 'all or nothing' policy, meaning if patients source eggs from elsewhere, they lose all funding for IVF via the NHS. 'This leaves a massive gap in equality for those in need of eggs. This affects people in same-sex male and heterosexual relationships, as well as single women and men. 'Due to this void in resources, many people are faced with the prospect of crushing a dream to have a biological child.' READ MORE: The petition calls on ministers to 'allow couples and individuals to purchase altruistically donated eggs from private clinics for use in NHS-funded IVF treatment' and to 'instruct NHS Scotland to create a clear clinical pathway to support those using private donor eggs". In its response to the petition, the Scottish Government told the Committee: 'We have always been clear that couples who are eligible for NHS fertility treatment should not pay for any aspect of their treatment, and this includes the purchase and use of donor gametes.' Couples using eggs from a known donor 'will be treated within the same timeframe as those using their own gametes,' it added. 'The current wait time for these couples is approximately eight to nine months. Couples who require an altruistic egg donor may wait between three to four years for treatment.' The Government said it has run national donor campaigns and added: 'NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is planning several campaigns this year to recruit egg and sperm donors, which will hopefully reduce the waiting times.' Helen Gibson, from the campaign group Surrogacy Concern, urged ministers to reject the petitioner's demands. She said: 'If people purchase eggs from private fertility clinics they should be rightly expected to bear the entire cost of fertility treatment themselves, not seek a discount on embryo creation and implantation at the expense of the Scottish taxpayer. 'Adverts which run in the UK seeking egg 'donors' do not have to state health risks. 'In 2023, the HFEA confirmed 53 cases of severe or critical ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) in women who were undergoing egg retrieval in the UK: complications from OHSS killed two British women in 2005/6. OHSS occurs in one third of all women undergoing egg retrieval under the age of 30. 'It is bad enough that the Scottish Government targeted their own young people, aged just 18, for gamete donation from 2021–2023, and that four Scottish NHS boards continue to do so. 'Government should not make this situation worse by subsidising and endorsing an industry which preys on young women, risking their own health and fertility—all so older people can buy eggs and get IVF and surrogacy on the Scottish taxpayer courtesy of the NHS.'
