YES SCOTLAND and Better Together made rival bids for the loyalties of the Highlands and Islands yesterday.

Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander returned to his Inverness constituency to slam an alleged “massive centralisation” drive by the Scottish National Party.

A “Holyrood elite” had concentrated decision-making in Edinburgh and sidelined the Highlands, he claimed.

The Lib Dem argued that a No vote would lead to a “federal UK” with greater local powers.

In the other camp, Scotland’s Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon continued her island tour — and bagged what she termed a “fabulous endorsement” from a local health boss.

NHS Orkney chairman John Ross Scott said “the Scottish government’s track record of investment in health — and not being sucked into the creeping privatisation agenda of healthcare south of the border — highlight why the future of the NHS in Scotland can only be secured with a Yes vote.”

But Labour MSP Neil Findlay said SNP “scaremongering” over the future of the NHS after a No vote wasn’t convincing.

“The NHS in Scotland is fully devolved,” he pointed out — adding that the use of private contractors in the service had risen 37 per cent since the SNP took power in 2007.

And the best way to protect the NHS was to campaign for a Labour victory in the 2015 UK general election.

“Labour will repeal the Health and Social Care Act bringing privateers into our NHS — (shadow health secretary) Andy Burnham has made that clear.

“The greatest threat to the NHS in Scotland is the £8.6 billion black hole in finances after a Yes vote and the SNP’s commitment to reduce public funds further with corporation tax cuts.”