Seven of the 10 places in the UK where people are most likely to die before reaching 60 are in Scotland, according to new analysis that has renewed calls for action on poverty, poor housing and insecure work.

Glasgow has the second-highest estimated proportion of people dying before their 60th birthday, at 12.8% – more than one in eight. Only Blackpool, at 14.7%, fares worse. The UK average is 7.8%.

The figures were published by Health Equals, a coalition of more than 130 organisations campaigning on health inequalities, and first reported by The Herald.

The worst-affected areas

Dundee has the fourth-highest proportion in the UK at 12.6%, followed by North Ayrshire at 12.5%, North Lanarkshire at 12.2% and East Ayrshire at 12%. West Dunbartonshire, at 11.8%, and Inverclyde, at 11.7%, complete the seven Scottish council areas among the bottom 10. Merthyr Tydfil in Wales and Middlesbrough in England are the only others.

The gulf between neighbouring communities is stark. In East Renfrewshire, which borders Glasgow, an estimated 5.3% of people die before 60 – less than half the city’s rate. In the best-performing area in the UK, Hart in Hampshire, the figure is 4%.

The analysis uses Office for National Statistics life tables based on mortality rates recorded between 2022 and 2024. It estimates the proportion of a hypothetical population who would die before 60 if those death rates applied throughout their lives. It is a measure of current risk rather than a forecast for any individual.

‘Real people whose lives are being cut short’

The author and social commentator Darren McGarvey, who is supporting the campaign, said: “Statistics like these can be easy to ignore, but they represent real people whose lives are being cut short. When one in eight people in a city like Glasgow don’t make it to 60, we’re not just talking about individual choices or access to healthcare.”

“I’ve spent years speaking to communities across Scotland and the message is often the same: people want to live healthier lives, but too many are facing barriers that are outside their control, whether that’s insecure work, poor housing, poverty or a lack of opportunities,” he said. “Health inequality isn’t inevitable.”

Health Equals argues that improving the nation’s health requires action far beyond the NHS. Its Shelf Life campaign highlights the role of housing, employment, income, education and community conditions in determining how long people live, and it wants governments to set measurable targets for reducing health inequalities.

Paul McDonald, director at Health Equals, said: “Your postcode shouldn’t determine your shelf life. But in the UK, it does. Behind every statistic is a person, a family and a community experiencing loss that is often preventable.”

Political reaction

Paul Sweeney, Labour MSP for Glasgow, called it “an absolute scandal that one in eight people in Glasgow will die before the age of 60”. He said stronger action was needed, “bringing together health, housing, urban planning, education, and social security to address the root causes of poverty and poor health”.

Miles Briggs, the Scottish Conservative health spokesman, said the figures showed Scotland “falling behind”, blaming the SNP’s record on public health and cuts to council budgets after 19 years in power. His party, he said, would shift the focus “from bloated bureaucracy to prevention” and strengthen primary care.

Susan Murray, Liberal Democrat MP for Mid Dunbartonshire, said the figures “should be a wake-up call”, adding that tackling health inequalities must become a shared priority across housing, employment, transport and education.

The government’s response

Public health minister Maree Todd welcomed the most recent Scottish life-expectancy estimates, which showed increases for both men and women, but said it remained “unacceptable that inequalities persist”.

She pointed to the Population Health Framework, a 10-year plan drawn up with the council body Cosla, which includes restrictions on the promotion of less healthy foods, the goal of a tobacco-free generation and a new alcohol and drugs plan focused on prevention. Todd said evidence behind the framework showed that years of austerity had contributed to poorer health and a stalling of improvements in life expectancy, and that about £3.5bn was being allocated in 2026-27 to tackle poverty and the cost of living.

Scotland has long had the lowest life expectancy of the UK nations, and the west of Scotland has been the focus of decades of research into what public health experts call excess mortality. The new figures suggest the gap between the country’s poorest and most affluent communities remains as wide as ever.