New hospital cleanliness standards will be in place early next year

The Scottish Executive regulations, which will be in place by next March, have been introduced to fight infections such as the suberbug, MRSA.

Hospitals which fail to meet more than 70% of the rules will be given a red classification. Amber and green will signify greater compliance.

The money is part of a �15m infection control campaign announced in March.

NHS boards will receive �100,000 to help bring in the new monitoring measures and ministers will receive quarterly reports on progress.

The traffic light system will aim to ensure health authorities which fail to meet the standards quickly rectify the problem.

Under the measures, domestic assistants will also be given more training and new housekeepers will ensure close communication between cleaning and nursing staff.

Staff communication

Health Minister Andy Kerr said tackling healthcare-associated infections was a top priority.

"I want to see a continual improvement in cleaning standards linked to a reduction in the rates of healthcare-associated infections, such as MRSA," he said.

"These new measures should help to further improve levels of cleanliness in hospitals, with the aim of cutting rates of infections over the long-term."

Midge Rotheram, chairman of the Association of Domestic Management, said: "The new role of housekeeper will improve communication between staff on wards, which is a key factor in the provision of good patient care.

"In particular, I welcome the emphasis on training for domestic assistants.

"It will enable domestic assistants and their managers to recognise existing skills and identify where more training is needed."

Powers to sisters

The Scottish National Party's deputy health spokesman Stewart Maxwell raised concerns that the measures would place extra bureaucracy on the NHS.

"What we need is more frontline domestic staff to ensure that our wards are as clean as possible," he said.