The Scottish Government has escalated its support and scrutiny of NHS Lothian maternity services after inspectors raised “serious concerns”.

Staffing shortages and a “culture of mistrust” has led to delays and patients being harmed at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, a review by Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) found.

Inspectors found 26 areas where required standards had not been met.

Scottish health secretary Neil Gray told MSPs on Wednesday that he was “deeply disappointed and concerned by the findings in the report”.

He said the Government has escalated NHS Lothian maternity services to level three of the NHS support and intervention framework to set things right.

“We are taking these concerns extremely seriously, and I expect NHS Lothian to act immediately to implement all

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