Scottish election briefing: Improving health and reducing inequalities
Published
17 April 2026
Ahead of the Scottish elections in May 2026, we have produced a briefing providing our recommendations for progress in several key areas to improve health and tackle inequalities: young men at risk of death from drugs, alcohol and suicide, the risk factors for poor health, employment, housing and poverty.
These recommendations have been developed by the Health Foundation in consultation with stakeholders, building on the work of SHERU and focus on improving health and inequalities rather than the NHS and social care.
Read the full briefing
An overview of our recommendations:
- Strengthen governance and accountability and align budgets to prevent deaths from drugs, alcohol and suicide
- Improve data, learning and coordination across national and local sectors
- Implement further marketing restrictions on alcohol and unhealthy food
- Strengthen licensing regulations to support local authorities and local health boards to reject applications for fast-food outlets and off-licences
- Expand smoke-free public places
- Implement clear processes and frameworks to prevent food and drink corporations from exerting disproportionate influence on public health policymaking
- Build a caseworker-led support model aimed at supporting worker retention
- Trial local job-pooling initiatives for workers unable to return to their previous roles due to health challenges, in areas with greatest need
- Develop and spread best practice on healthy work through partnering with employers and employees
- Reinforce best practice around sick pay
- Commit to delivering the social housing Scotland needs
- Commit to preventing homelessness and reducing high costs of temporary accommodation
- Improve housing quality to protect health and reduce long-term inequalities
- Increase the Scottish Child Payment
- Mitigate the health impacts of poverty
- Sustained support for parental employment
- Education as a driver of opportunity