Scottish Conservatives health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said Scots would not “fall for the boasting from Swinney and Neil Gray”.
He said: “John Swinney can spin all he wants but the reality is he is set to break another promise on the NHS.
“Having pledged to eradicate waits of over a year by March, tens of thousands of patients are still suffering these intolerable delays.”
He added: “Instead of sticking to their current approach, the nationalists should do the right thing and back our bold plans to cut bureaucracy and get resources to the frontline to ensure patients are seen as quickly as possible.”
According to the new figures, on 30 November 2025 there were an estimated 605,051 individuals on at least one new outpatient, inpatient or day case waiting list.
There were 44,363 waits of over a year for outpatients with 5,009 of these exceeding two years, a decrease of 843 from the end of October.
For inpatient or day case waits, the figures dropped from the previous month by 1,199 waits to 25,846, with 4,380 exceeding two years.