Why is mortality higher in Scotland than in England and Wales? Decreasing influence of socioeconomic deprivation between 1981 and 2001 supports the existence of a 'Scottish Effect'

Abstract

Scotland's relative mortality disadvantage compared to the rest of Great Britain, after allowing for deprivation, is worsening. By 1991 measures of deprivation no longer explained most of the excess mortality in Scotland and the unexplained excess has persisted during the 1990s. More research is required to understand what is causing this 'Scottish effect'.