With just one week to go until Scots go to the polls, Anas Sarwar says a Scottish Labour government would hit the ground running with 100 days of change to fix the mess after 20 years of SNP failure.

The Scottish Labour leader says Scotland needs change and that this election is a straight choice between five more years of excuses from John Swinney and the SNP, or a Scottish Labour government ready to get to work from day one.

Mr Sarwar says that after 20 years of broken promises, people are right to ask what would actually change. That is why Scottish Labour has set out the first 50 actions a Labour government would take in its first 100 days to save the NHS, make life more affordable, grow the economy, back local communities and end government waste.

Scottish Labour said that while the SNP is tired, out of ideas and full of excuses, Scotland does not have to be.

Under the plan, a Scottish Labour government would in its first 100 days:

• Declare a waiting times emergency and publish a plan to get patients treated wherever there is capacity
• Stop the downgrading of Wishaw neonatal unit and start work to end the 8am rush for a GP appointment
• Expand the Warm Homes Programme, widen support with energy costs and boost the Warm Home Discount
• If international instability continues, deliver £100 million of emergency support including help for struggling households, support for businesses, bulk buying fuel to bring down prices at the pumps, and action with supermarkets to keep down the cost of staple items
• Transfer the first £70 million into a pothole fund for councils
• Remove the ideological ban on new nuclear projects and get Scotland back in the race for jobs and investment
• Create an Ending Homelessness Unit and begin action to eradicate rough sleeping
• Ban phones in classrooms and begin recruiting the first tranche of recovery teachers
• Establish a Delivery Unit and a Scottish Treasury to drive efficiency, cut waste and focus government on results
• Call in CMAL and CalMac to find solutions to avoid a summer ferry crisis and begin unpicking the SNP’s ferry fiasco.

Read more about Scottish Labour’s plans for the first 100 days here.

Commenting, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said: “We have all seen the mess John Swinney and the SNP have made over those 20 years.

“Our NHS is struggling, family budgets are under pressure, our roads are crumbling, and too many people feel our country is stuck.

“The SNP has had 20 years and Scotland has paid the price.

“My message to voters is simple: you’ve given the SNP 20 years, give me five.

“Give me five years to fix the mess, get the basics right and build a better future for Scotland.

“And in our first 100 days, we will show exactly what change looks like.

“That means emergency action to cut waiting times and save our NHS, practical help with the cost of living, action to fix the roads, support to tackle homelessness, steps to get our economy moving, and a government that respects taxpayers’ money instead of wasting it.

“And if this international instability continues, we will not sit back and let Scottish families and businesses pay the price. We will act with £100 million of emergency support in our first 100 days.

“This election is a straight choice between more SNP failure or change with Scottish Labour.

“On May 7, vote Scottish Labour for the change Scotland needs.”