John Swinney has been told the Scottish Government should "hang its head in shame" after Sir Rod Stewart paid for a child's autism diagnosis following a three-year wait.
The First Minister was condemned for lengthy waiting times in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAHMS) by Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar.
Mr Swinney, who said an official diagnosis was not needed to access support, was also asked whether he agreed with UK Health Secretary Wes Streeting that some mental health conditions are overdiagnosed.
During First Minister's Questions, it was put to Mr Swinney that the rock star stepped in after the Daily Record revealed Iain Gregori, four, had waited three years for a diagnosis, despite his father repeatedly being told he is autistic.
“Three years on, Iain is still non-verbal and is still waiting on a diagnosis,” Mr Sarwar said.
“Michael was a member of the SNP and campaigned for them to be in Government.
“He told me that they should now hang their heads in shame, as they have let Scotland down.
“When speaking of his son, he said ‘everyone is saying Iain needs this diagnosis, he is autistic, everyone is sure of it, but at the same time he needs an official diagnosis to get the resources he needs’.
“Rod Stewart heard this heartbreaking story and stepped in to pay for Iain’s diagnosis.
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“Others won’t be as lucky – why, on John Swinney’s watch, do young people have to rely on the charity of a rock star to get the treatment they need?”
Responding, the First Minister stressed an official diagnosis is not required to begin accessing support.
“It is absolutely critical that I make that point to Parliament today,” he said.
“Because there are other pathways that are available, other than diagnosis for ADHD or a neurodiversity condition, which enables young people to attract the support that will assist them in meeting the challenges that they face.”
He stressed “parents can be reassured that there is support available to meet the needs of individual young people”.
He added: “The Government is taking a range of interventions where we’re expanding mental health support or supporting the development of community interventions and we are working to make sure that young people get that support at the earliest possible opportunity.”
Sir Rod told the Daily Record his team would work to find a private specialist in London or in Scotland to provide a diagnosis and he would cover the costs.
The First Minister was also challenged on figures released this week which found a child in the NHS Lothian area has waited six years for treatment.
“We are working to reduce waiting times for access to treatment for individuals across the health service in Scotland and we are making progress in a number of areas in relation to that objective,” Mr Swinney said.
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“The Government has delivered increased investment in mental health support to expand capacity to meet the developing needs that there are among young people in Scotland.
“I want to make sure that our investments are well targeted to address the issues that Mr Sarwar put in place, that’s why we increase the funding for mental health support and that’s why we are putting in place the assistance that we are putting in place around the country.”
Last month, Mr Streeting told the BBC there was an "overdiagnosis" of mental health conditions like autism and ADHD, with "too many people being written off".
Following FMQs, Mr Swinney was asked if he agreed.
He told journalists: "I'm trying to reassure parents and families that there are ways to attract support that do not rely upon a diagnosis for ADHD or for neurodiversity."
He added: "There are different pathways without it purely and simply being defined by the number of diagnoses."
"I'm not a clinician so I tend to steer away from making clinical judgements - I don't think it's a good idea for politicians to do so - I think what we should do is ensure we've got a range of pathways available to support families who will face enormous anxiety.
"I don't in anyway trivialise that. I know how worrying it is."
