Starmer promises to transform medical research ahead of Edinburgh visit

The Labor leader is due to visit the medical research center in Edinburgh’s BioQuarter on Thursday.

He said his party’s industrial strategy would make Scotland a “world leader” in medical technology.

The visit comes during the SNP’s leadership contest, which sees three candidates vying to replace Nicola Sturgeon – Humza Yousaf, Kate Forbes and Ash Regan.

According to Labour, R&D spending in Scotland has lagged behind the rest of the UK and other OECD countries in recent years.

Sir Keir said: “Years of mismanagement and neglect under the SNP and the Tories have left Scotland with a flagging economy and an NHS at breaking point

“But it’s also home to some of the most innovative companies and exciting research in the world.

“Ending the stick-on policies that have led to sluggish economic growth and ailing public services means investing resolutely in the technology of tomorrow.

“It means using the genius in every corner of Scotland and the rest of the UK.

“Here in Scotland, that means tackling these two critical challenges by transforming medical research.

“Scotland has the opportunity to become a world leader in innovative healthcare and medical technology, but two governments are wasting its potential.”

He continued: “Labour’s industrial strategy will boost investment in research and development across the UK and unlock the possibilities of the future.

“This will build a stronger economy that supports an NHS that provides world class care and ensures patients in Scotland benefit from being at the cutting edge of medical technology.

“That is the change that Scotland needs and that a Labor government that I lead will bring about.”

Scottish Conservative leader Craig Hoy said Mr Starmer “offers warm words but he cannot hide from the fact that Labor would take the same failed approach to the NHS as the SNP”.

“Last month Labor announced plans for a huge centralization of healthcare in Scotland, removing local services particularly from rural areas,” said the MSP for southern Scotland.

“It is clear from the SNP leadership debates that all three candidates view Keir Starmer as a potential ally who will grant them the independence referendum they long for.”

SNP MSP Emma Harper said Sir Keir was “happy to throw Scotland under Boris Johnson’s Brexit bus” and “as such he has no credibility when speaking about the public health challenges north of the border”.

“Under him and Anas Sarwar, Labor is a pro-Brexit party who would do nothing to reverse the appalling damage the Tories are doing to Scotland and our NHS after pulling us out of the EU,” she said.

“Instead, Labor stands side by side with the Tories and refuses to support free movement and an immigration system that works for Scotland.

“It is becoming clearer by the day that the only way forward for Scotland is to become an independent country and join the European Union.”