Chronic NHS waiting lists are causing a spike in sickness absence from work and damaging the economy, a damning new report warns.

Scotland’s financial slowdown is being made worse by the growing number of people unable or unwilling to look for work.

The report by CBI Scotland and the Fraser of Allander Institute think-tank blamed lengthy NHS waiting lists as a major factor for the current crisis.

The soaring number of Scots who are facing long waits for hospital treatment is higher than in other parts of the UK.

Mairi Spowage, director of the Fraser of Allander Institute at Strathclyde University, said: ‘The health of the workforce continues to be a significant concern.

‘The indicators in the index on sickness absence and inactivity due to ill health suggest there has been deterioration in this area over the last year.

The soaring number of Scots who are facing long waits for hospital treatment is higher than in other parts of the UK.

‘Indeed, wider indicators – such as people claiming disability-related benefits – have suggested that the situation has only worsened.

‘There are many reasons for this, and therefore the policy responses to deal with it will have to be similarly multi-faceted.

‘The legacy of the pandemic continues to loom large, with long Covid and mental health issues causing issues for many.

‘In addition, the crisis in the health service – and the associated long waits for treatment – is undoubtedly contributing to the problem.’

The Index found that the proportion of hours lost to long-term sickness increased to 3 per cent in 2022, compared to 2.1 per cent the previous year.

This means the average 40-hour-a week worker loses nearly 11 days a year to sickness. This compares to a sickness absence rate across the whole of the UK of 2.6 per cent.

The report also found that 31.7 per cent of all economic inactivity in Scotland was down to long-term sickness during the period from October 2022 to September 2023.

Scotland also lagged behind the rest of the UK on ten out of 13 economic productivity indicators.

Scottish Conservative finance spokesman Liz Smith said: ‘This stark report lays bare the knock-on effect the SNP’s failure to tackle the spiralling NHS backlog is having on our economy.

‘That is the last thing Scotland’s sluggish growth rate needs as more and more people suffer the physical and mental effects of long waits for treatment and illnesses.

‘The fact that absences from work as a result of illness are now higher than pre-pandemic levels is a damning indictment on the SNP’s record in ensuring we have a healthy workforce.’

Ms Smith pointed out that new Health Secretary Neil Gray is a former economy minister and as such ‘must recognise the importance of good health for boosting productivity and ensure people are treated as soon as possible.’

Willie Rennie, economy spokesman for the Scottish Liberal Democrats, said: ‘Scotland has sluggish levels of business investment and a sickly workforce because people are having to wait so long to get treatment.

‘The Nationalists have been in charge for almost 17 years and they have served both our health service and our economy poorly.’

Scottish Labour economy spokesman Daniel Johnson said: ‘Record-high waiting lists are causing misery and wreaking havoc with our economy. The SNP’s failure to get to grips with this crisis engulfing our NHS means thousands are excluded from the workforce.’

The percentage of economic inactivity attributed to long-term ill-health in England was found to be only 24.2 per cent, compared with 34 per cent in Wales and 34.2 per cent in Northern Ireland.

Another gloomy finding was that business investment as a proportion of GDP fell by 0.3 percentage points in 2022, to 9.5 per cent, below the long-term trend of 9.8 per cent.

But it is also noted that Scotland has the highest proportion of adults with higher education certificates, at 50 per cent, compared to 43.5 per cent for the UK.

A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘Between 2008 and 2022, productivity in Scotland increased by an average of 1 per cent a year compared to growth of 0.5 per cent for the UK as a whole.’