Current status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 26 August 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to ensure that NICE-compliant specialist services for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) are introduced by NHS boards, and that these services comply with the principles contained in the delivery plan for ME/CFS to ensure that people in Scotland with the condition do not receive inadequate care compared with those in England.
There are no devolved elements of the UK Government’s delivery plan on ME/CFS. It covers the population of England only.
We are unable to formally endorse the Plan due to differing healthcare systems and statutory structures.
However, the 2025-26 Scottish Budget includes an additional £4.5 million to deliver new specialist support across the country for long COVID, ME/CFS and other similar conditions. We want this money to have maximum impact and we are working closely and carefully with health boards across Scotland to allocate it as quickly and effectively as possible.
The provision of healthcare services is the responsibility of NHS health boards. In commissioning boards’ plans for this funding we have stressed the importance of ensuring that services are informed by current clinical best practice, such as National Institute for Excellence in Healthcare (NICE) guidelines NG:206 and NG:188– which are available to clinicians across the UK - and that care is delivered in line with the relevant recommendations, wherever applicable.