Sturgeon urges swine flu funding

Ms Sturgeon said the vaccine would be available in Scotland

Scottish Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon has called on the UK government to make extra funds available for swine flu vaccinations.

Ms Sturgeon said money would be found to fund a vaccination programme in Scotland but pressed the Treasury for contingency funds.

She warned that cuts could have to be made if the vaccination programme had to be funded from the Scottish budget.

A Treasury spokesman said last week that health budgets were devolved.

Finance Secretary John Swinney has written to the Treasury, warning there would be "significant" implications for health spending and other programmes if the Holyrood administration had to foot the bill.

Vaccine programme

Now Ms Sturgeon has said: "The bottom line is we will fund both the vaccine and the delivery of that vaccine. If we don't win the argument on contingency funding we will fund that out of the Scottish budget.

"We're simply making the case that we think a pandemic flu outbreak is something that should trigger the use of contingency funding.

"But make no mistake, the vaccine programme will be funded."

Ms Sturgeon added: "Every spending decision we take in a fixed budget like the budget the Scottish Government has means that we can't spend money elsewhere, so we will take those decisions should that be necessary.

"We've budgeted £100m for measures required to deal with a pandemic flu outbreak, so we budgeted for the stockpiling of anti-virals, facemasks, but no country across the UK budgeted for a vaccine because you didn't know when you would need that vaccine.

"Unlike anti-virals you can't stockpile a vaccine in advance because you don't know what strain of vaccine you'll need until you know what strain of flu you're dealing with."

A Treasury spokesman said last week: "The administration and delivery of the response to swine flu is devolved, and so are the budgets to meet the costs."

Labour health spokeswoman Cathy Jamieson said: "The Scottish Government should be planning now for a vaccination programme and how it will meet the cost of this from the existing budget."

Ms Jamieson said it was "only right that people in Scotland get the same access to the vaccine as those in England".

Tory health spokeswoman Mary Scanlon accused the SNP of playing constitutional politics over the pandemic.

She said: "In England the cost of the vaccine is being met from within their health budget. A responsible, grown up Scottish Government would accept its devolved responsibility and do the same."