Data from Public Health Scotland shows, at 31 January 2026, new outpatient waits of more than 52 weeks have more than halved since July 2025 – with the total waits decreasing by 52.6% in that period.

Long waits for inpatient and day case procedures have also fallen every month since July 2025, with 52-week waits decreasing by 29.8% in that 8-month period.

New quarterly diagnostics statistics also show that, at 31 December 2025, the number of waits for one of the eight key diagnostic tests had decreased by 15.1% when compared to 30 September 2025.

The figures also show diagnostic activity has risen - 245,377 diagnostic tests were completed from September 2025 to December 2025, a 10.2% (22,741) increase on the same quarter last year.

Health secretary, Neil Gray, said: ‘We are making undeniable progress in clearing waits of over a year – we are demonstrating consistent month-on-month improvement. We know there is still more to do but these latest figures show that our plan is working and our NHS is turning a corner.

‘We continue to see downward trends across nearly all waiting list indicators and diagnostic activity is up – this means thousands more people getting their MRIs, scans and scopes quicker.

‘Our targeted funding for this year is delivering thousands more operations and procedures and appointments compared to last year, and we are determined to build on this momentum.'