SNP leader John Swinney has warned Scotland is facing a nursing crisis which is undermining attempts to cut waiting lists.

As the first shots in the Scottish elections are fired, Swinney launched a campaign to highlight the "sick pay" of Scots nurses.

The SNP chief said the Lib Dem/Labour coalition was presiding over record levels of nurse vacancies.

He said vacancies had risen by 46 per cent since 1999.The number of young nurses under 30 attracted to the NHS had fallen by 1416 over the period, the party claimed.The number of agency nurses used in the NHS had risen by 45 per cent over the period, Swinney warned.

"There is a crisis in nursing and it is getting steadily worse. Vacancies up 46 per cent, agency nurses up 45 per cent and a fall in the number of young nurses working in our health service," he said.

"Without the right number of nurses, the health service cannot meet the needs of patients. That is why waiting lists have gone up 10,000 under Labour and waiting times have lengthened by a week.

"The SNP will give nurses an 11 per cent pay rise, over and above any UK settlement, not just because our nurses deserve it - and they do - but because it will give Scotland a competitive edge in the marketplace for nurses."