Care–home body ‘rehired staff’

THE body that inspects care homes has spent £400,000 rehiring staff who either took voluntary redundancy or early retirement, MSPs were told.

Labour health spokeswoman Jackie Baillie said that cash could have been better spent on “ensuring the best care for our older people”.

She said that under the Scottish Government, the Care Inspectorate – which regulates and inspects care, social work and child protection services – was “to start life with a 25 per cent budget cut and a 20 per cent reduction in staffing”.

Ms Baillie accused the SNP government of being in “denial about the budget cut in the first place”, but said there had now been a “partial restoration” of the inspectorate’s budget.

She added: “That ostrich-like behaviour meant a number of staff have now had to be rehired at an additional cost of some £400,000.”