Pressure is mounting on the Scottish Government over NHS Scotland’s A&E crisis ahead of this winter after new figures revealed the worst September waiting-time performance since the SNP came to power in 2007.
Official statistics published on Tuesday show that just 64.1 per cent of patients attending A&E departments in September were seen within the Scottish Government’s four-hour target, down from 65.8 per cent in August.
The figures mark the worst September on record, with 51,864 patients waiting longer than four hours to be seen.
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Of those attending emergency departments, 20,138 (13.9 per cent) faced waits of more than eight hours, while 8,658 (6 per cent) waited more than 12 hours.
The latest figures also reveal a deterioration compared with September 2025, when 67.1 per cent of patients were seen within four hours and 45,649 waited longer than the target.
The statistics come as Scotland’s NHS braces for mounting pressure over the winter months, with fresh weekly figures showing a further decline in A&E performance.
In the week ending October 25, just 59.1 per cent of patients were seen within four hours, down from 60.6 per cent the previous week.
A total of 11,318 patients waited longer than four hours, while 4,608 (16.7 per cent) faced waits exceeding eight hours and 2,169 (7.8 per cent) waited more than 12 hours.
The figures have prompted renewed criticism of the SNP Government's handling of the NHS, with the Scottish Conservatives warning that patients and frontline staff face another difficult winter.
Scottish Conservative health and care spokesman Miles Briggs MSP said: “These atrocious figures are further proof the SNP has no clue how to fix the permanent crisis in Scotland’s A&E departments.
“More and more patients are suffering intolerable delays because successive SNP health secretaries have presided over a system where backroom bureaucracy is prioritised over frontline care.
“With winter rapidly approaching, patients and frontline staff deserve better than flimsy plans from the SNP and ministers pretending everything is fine.
“John Swinney needs to stop the spin and get serious about the crisis in A&E which is spiralling out of control ahead of winter once again under the SNP.”
The Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) is calling on the Scottish Government to tackle the bed capacity issue which is largely driving many of these long waits and for a reduction in corridor care by 50%. When patients at the 'back door' of the hospital can be discharged in good time, it allows A&E to admit new patients into beds, freeing up Emergency Care space.
Meanwhile, just 60.6% of patients waited fewer than four hours – well below the 95% target set by the NHS.
The RCEM has said the figures show emergency Departments (EDs) are struggling more than they were this time last year.
It is calling on the Scottish Government to urgently tackle delayed discharges by improving access to social care and community support, freeing up hospital beds and easing pressure on overcrowded A&E departments.
Dr Fiona Hunter, RCEM Scotland Vice President, said: "Throughout 2026, EDs have been in a state of crisis with absolutely no room to stretch when extra pressure comes our way.
"Thousands of patients each month have been waiting for more than half a day in our EDs. That's thousands of our own parents, children, brothers and sisters experiencing agonising waits because of a total breakdown in patient flow.
"As these latest figures show, our Emergency Departments (EDs) are far from ready for the surge in demand which we know will come when winter hits, as it does every year.
"Last winter was incredibly tough – both for patients and for the staff trying their best to look after them. We are entering the cold months now in a worse state than this time last year, despite promise after promise that things would be different.
"We once again call on the government to urgently send support our way in the form of improvements to the 'back door' of our hospitals. Lives are at stake, and without immediate intervention, EDs are at risk of collapse."
Responding to the figures, Health Secretary Angela Constance acknowledged that A&E performance remained below acceptable levels and insisted the Scottish Government was taking action to tackle delays.
She said: “While the pressures facing emergency departments are not unique to Scotland, these latest figures demonstrate that performance remains below the level we want to see - and this cannot continue.
“We are taking action through our plan for hospital flow, which includes expanding Hospital at Home services, embedding a Home First approach to care, and implementing the 'Discharge Without Delay' approach in all health boards this winter.
"We have launched a new public awareness campaign to help people access the right care in the right place, at the right time.
"We continue to ask people to play their part by using services appropriately: calling 999 only in a genuine emergency, dialling 111 for non-emergencies, and using A&E only when necessary. This supports our dedicated health and social care staff, who remain the cornerstone of our winter response and continue to show great resilience and determination."
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