:00:29. > :00:44.Wins on to portfolio questions on education and skills. Can I ask the
:00:45. > :00:48.Scottish Government what support it offers to people from island
:00:49. > :00:57.communities who want to access university medical courses?
:00:58. > :01:02.Minister. The Scottish Government supports a number of initiatives to
:01:03. > :01:07.encourage island communities to access high demand professions such
:01:08. > :01:12.as medicine clinic in March this year, we also announced funding of
:01:13. > :01:19.?330,000 to deliver pre-emptive courses to medicine, being a key
:01:20. > :01:21.component of Aberdeen university. The Scottish funding council
:01:22. > :01:27.provides additional funding to universities to help improve access
:01:28. > :01:31.to high demand professions. There is a reach programme to each medical
:01:32. > :01:39.school in Scotland to assist pupils from local aggression schools who
:01:40. > :01:43.wish to access medical courses. Can I thank the minister for that
:01:44. > :01:47.response? She will recognise that recruiting and training staff to
:01:48. > :01:56.island services presents specific challenges. Getting to medical
:01:57. > :02:00.school is difficult, but pupils need to believe they can achieve it,
:02:01. > :02:05.otherwise they will not apply. Work experience is essential, but not
:02:06. > :02:11.easy. For many students, there are confidence unity issues. Travel can
:02:12. > :02:16.cost ?1000 or more and take students out of school for two or three days,
:02:17. > :02:25.at a time when they need to be focused on getting the five Grade As
:02:26. > :02:28.that they need. Agree that there will be further steps which can be
:02:29. > :02:38.taken to level the playing field even more, to improve the access of
:02:39. > :02:44.Ireland people's to medical courses? I would readily agree with the
:02:45. > :02:54.premise of the MacArthur's point. I discussed this very challenge when I
:02:55. > :03:02.was at Glasgow university recently. As I mentioned in my original
:03:03. > :03:07.answer, there is a pre-medical entry programme which looks at remote
:03:08. > :03:13.communities. We also have a graduate entry medical programme, which again
:03:14. > :03:20.ensures that remote and rural focus is given to those people going
:03:21. > :03:28.through that course, and I'm aware of other collaborations which
:03:29. > :03:33.continue with the NHS to ensure that clearing events and other events are
:03:34. > :03:39.taking place in school, to ensure that those in remote and island
:03:40. > :03:42.communities can access the Didi information and encouragement that
:03:43. > :03:50.we would expect in any of our schools. I am happy to carry on the
:03:51. > :03:56.dialogue with Liam McArthur if he thinks there are particular aspects
:03:57. > :04:03.in his constituency. How does you a giant's compass model help islanders
:04:04. > :04:16.train as health care professionals. We know it is easier...
:04:17. > :04:24.UHI is a key partner, we are taking steps to improve access in rural
:04:25. > :04:29.areas. As I mentioned, the graduate entry programme was announced in
:04:30. > :04:33.delivered by the medical schools of delivered by the medical schools of
:04:34. > :04:35.St Andrews and Dundee, in collaboration with the University Of
:04:36. > :04:41.Highlands And Islands. It will provide students with exposure to
:04:42. > :04:44.the issues and will help deliver a more sustainable health workforce
:04:45. > :04:50.for Scotland and its rural communities. With regard to nursing
:04:51. > :04:55.and midwifery, the University of Stirling will transfer 100
:04:56. > :05:00.registrations to UHI from next year. And I look forward to visiting
:05:01. > :05:10.Inverness to see that work when I go up to Inverness in October. To ask
:05:11. > :05:14.the Scottish Government when the 20 14th guide and is on school meals
:05:15. > :05:22.will be reviewed? There are currently no plans to review that
:05:23. > :05:25.guidance. 2008 guidance, healthy eating in schools, will be updated
:05:26. > :05:32.following any changes coming out of the review of the nutritional
:05:33. > :05:42.requirements of food and Greg in schools. The programme supports
:05:43. > :05:45.schools in food education. It is unlikely to be required to be
:05:46. > :05:52.updated in the light of the review of the nutritional standards. One
:05:53. > :05:57.concern I have in my area is that very often, when parents make
:05:58. > :06:02.complaints about what they consider to be the nutritional standard of
:06:03. > :06:07.school meals, that government guidance is voted back almost as if
:06:08. > :06:11.it were regulation, and that the local authority was hidebound in
:06:12. > :06:16.what they were able to offer. Can the Cabinet Secretary confirm that
:06:17. > :06:27.it is in fact guidance and not regulation? Presiding Officer, we do
:06:28. > :06:35.provide guidance of the type Healthy Eating In Schools and Better Eating,
:06:36. > :06:40.Better Learning. It is designed to support local authorities in their
:06:41. > :06:44.schools programme. But local authorities do have flexibility to
:06:45. > :06:50.provide food and print services as they deem appropriate to meet local
:06:51. > :06:57.needs and priorities, dividing they have first fulfilled their statutory
:06:58. > :07:02.obligations in this respect. The legislation to produce the highest
:07:03. > :07:09.quality of produce under the highest animal welfare protocols, ensuring a
:07:10. > :07:13.living wage in the countryside. In producing produce for schools, we
:07:14. > :07:16.find that the central government contract is importing foodstuffs
:07:17. > :07:21.from all over the world which can be produced and is produced, to a
:07:22. > :07:27.higher standard, by our own farmers. Can we make it sure that local food
:07:28. > :07:30.makes it onto the plates of our schoolchildren for the sake of their
:07:31. > :07:37.health, and in support of the local economy? This was something which my
:07:38. > :07:41.colleague was dealing with when he was the Rural Affairs Secretary. He
:07:42. > :07:46.invested a significant amount of time to work with me in my former
:07:47. > :07:50.responsibility, in procurement, to make sure that we had as much effort
:07:51. > :07:55.and opportunity for the farming community within Scotland to be able
:07:56. > :08:01.to access procurement contracts at a general level within Scotland, but
:08:02. > :08:05.obviously food contracts being a substantial proportion of that. In
:08:06. > :08:08.principle, I am in agreement about the importance of ensuring that the
:08:09. > :08:14.quality agricultural produce in Scotland can find its way into the
:08:15. > :08:19.procurement contracts in the public sector, and particularly into our
:08:20. > :08:23.schools. As part of the learning experience, I am also very keen that
:08:24. > :08:26.young people have an understanding of the origins and routes by which
:08:27. > :08:30.food is produced to enable that better understanding as part of the
:08:31. > :08:37.health and well-being aspect of the curriculum which is undertaken in
:08:38. > :08:42.our schools. To ask the Scottish Government what measures it has
:08:43. > :08:45.taken to ensure that schools can fill teacher vacancies? The
:08:46. > :08:50.Government has taken a number of actions to help recruit teachers. We
:08:51. > :08:52.are spending ?88 million this year to make sure every school has access
:08:53. > :08:57.to the right number of teachers. We have increased student intake
:08:58. > :09:00.targets for the sixth year in a row. And we are setting targets to train
:09:01. > :09:04.teachers in the subjects where they are needed most. We are also
:09:05. > :09:09.supporting innovative new routes into teaching. We launched a new
:09:10. > :09:13.teacher recruitment campaign on the 8th of February, under the title
:09:14. > :09:21.Teaching Meets People. This builds on the success of last year's
:09:22. > :09:24.Inspiring Teachers campaign. Clearly, none of that is working,
:09:25. > :09:32.because the Cabinet Secretary will be aware that there are 700 current
:09:33. > :09:37.teacher vacancies, and this is having a direct impact on children's
:09:38. > :09:40.education. In addition, there is a market increase in head teachers are
:09:41. > :09:45.being asked to look after more than one school and this is becoming the
:09:46. > :09:49.norm in some areas. How on earth can they look after their school when
:09:50. > :09:52.they are not there on a daily basis? How far we allow one excellent
:09:53. > :10:00.education service fall before the Government acts? Let me address a
:10:01. > :10:05.number of the points which she makes. " I recognise that there are
:10:06. > :10:10.shortages in the viability of teachers in certain parts of the
:10:11. > :10:13.country and in certain subjects. I set out a number of the steps which
:10:14. > :10:16.the Government is taking to try to rectify that. This year alone we
:10:17. > :10:23.have increased the number of places available for teacher training by
:10:24. > :10:28.370 two begin to address those issues. The whole process of what we
:10:29. > :10:33.are planning is a complex and difficult process, and quite
:10:34. > :10:39.clearly, shortages are arising out of that. I can also assure her that
:10:40. > :10:47.I have had discussions with the General Teaching Council For
:10:48. > :10:51.Scotland, who regularly... To ensure that where there are registered
:10:52. > :10:54.teachers who are not currently active in teaching, they are being
:10:55. > :10:59.contacted to try to motivate them to become active in teaching. And also,
:11:00. > :11:05.the General Teaching Council takes an efficient approach to teaching
:11:06. > :11:10.applications, to assess and evaluate the contribution teachers can make
:11:11. > :11:15.to a schools education if they would wish to do so. The second issue was
:11:16. > :11:19.about the fact that some headteachers may be operating across
:11:20. > :11:24.more than one school. I disagree fundamentally with her about this
:11:25. > :11:30.particular point. I think where we have exceptional head teachers, with
:11:31. > :11:35.the right support models in place, I think it is perfectly possible and
:11:36. > :11:38.tangible for those headteachers to be able to deploy their skills
:11:39. > :11:43.across more than one school. For example, in the city of Glasgow, one
:11:44. > :11:50.head teacher of a large secondary school, St Andrews secondary school
:11:51. > :11:54.in the East End of Glasgow, regarded as one of the most experienced and
:11:55. > :11:56.effective headteachers in the country, has been invited by the
:11:57. > :12:04.director of education in Glasgow City Council to provide leadership
:12:05. > :12:08.at the same time at Holyrood secondary school. My response to
:12:09. > :12:14.that was to say that I thought it was advantageous for pupils in many
:12:15. > :12:20.parts of our country to experience distinguished and effectively to
:12:21. > :12:24.ship in education. It has to be properly supported, I accept that.
:12:25. > :12:28.But I think the arrangements that we put in place in that example, by
:12:29. > :12:32.Glasgow City Council, I fully support and endorse because I think
:12:33. > :12:37.they are beneficial for the young people in Scotland. Can the Cabinet
:12:38. > :12:44.Secretary outline that progress is being made to develop new routes
:12:45. > :12:49.into teaching? Presiding Officer, at my instigation, there were a number
:12:50. > :12:55.of new projects identified to encourage teachers to enter the
:12:56. > :12:59.teaching profession. The General Teaching Council Is Assessing 11 Of
:13:00. > :13:02.Those Particular Routes And Some Of That Assessment Is Now Complete, And
:13:03. > :13:08.We Are Able To Recruit Teachers On The Basis Of Those New routes into
:13:09. > :13:13.teaching. It is an example of where the Government has responded
:13:14. > :13:16.positively and provided innovative approaches, and I woke the input we
:13:17. > :13:24.have had from the College of education. The Cabinet Secretary at
:13:25. > :13:29.knowledge is that feeling teaching vacancies quite often takes time.
:13:30. > :13:35.Sometimes, supply teachers can be used when a teacher is absent.
:13:36. > :13:37.Supply teachers are falling -- supply teacher numbers. So what
:13:38. > :13:39.urgent action is the Scottish devilment taking to deal with supply
:13:40. > :13:54.teacher numbers? The measures set out to contact
:13:55. > :13:59.registered teachers who are not currently active in teaching but
:14:00. > :14:04.could contribute in some way to the supply pool, is one of the most
:14:05. > :14:10.significant areas that we can take action in this respect. The question
:14:11. > :14:15.that Mr Kirk raises is one which highlights the general challenge
:14:16. > :14:20.that exists in that this issue. Just before the Easter recess, I spent
:14:21. > :14:24.two days at the international summit on the teaching profession. Mike two
:14:25. > :14:31.predecessors took part in that summit in New Zealand and Canada. I
:14:32. > :14:44.took part of it in Morrison Street in Edinburgh. The chamber will
:14:45. > :14:49.understand how Morrison Street is in comparison to New Zealand and
:14:50. > :14:54.Canada. In all the countries represented at the summit, and it
:14:55. > :15:00.was clear from my counterpart in England and Singapore, and Finland,
:15:01. > :15:04.and in Canada, and in New Zealand, in very highly regarded education
:15:05. > :15:08.systems, there is a systemic challenge of recruiting individuals
:15:09. > :15:13.to the teaching profession which is not just the Scottish issue. We have
:15:14. > :15:20.to think inventively and creatively how we can motivate more people to
:15:21. > :15:24.come into the teaching profession. Part of my general work is to raise
:15:25. > :15:27.the credibility and value and esteem of the teaching profession as young
:15:28. > :15:32.people will need to have a good flow of individuals entering the
:15:33. > :15:37.profession to deliver the education on which they depend. To ask the
:15:38. > :15:43.Scottish Government whether it will provide an update to Parliament
:15:44. > :15:47.whether it will publish a new anti-bullying strategy for schools.
:15:48. > :15:55.The Government will issue a refreshed anti-bullying guidance
:15:56. > :15:57.when the equality and human rights Committee has finished its
:15:58. > :16:01.investigation into bullying in schools. I am grateful to the
:16:02. > :16:05.Committee to consider further evidence and we will consider the
:16:06. > :16:08.views and any further evidence gathered prior to the publication of
:16:09. > :16:13.the strategy. Can I thank the Cabinet Secretary for that answer.
:16:14. > :16:18.Every good strategy needs a vision. It needs a plan of vision and
:16:19. > :16:23.allocation of appropriate resources as well. Bullying is not confined to
:16:24. > :16:28.young people and schools alone, does the Cabinet Secretary consider that
:16:29. > :16:33.the cut by over 1000 in classroom assistants and the cut by over 4000
:16:34. > :16:38.of teachers and Scottish classrooms since his Party took office will
:16:39. > :16:45.help or hinder the effective implementation of this delayed
:16:46. > :16:55.anti-bullying strategy? The first thing is to say, Mr Leonard uses the
:16:56. > :17:04.word delayed. The House I am being censored but it was used in a
:17:05. > :17:07.pejorative way. The Government responded to a Committee positively.
:17:08. > :17:11.I could publish the strategy months ago but the Committee asked if I
:17:12. > :17:16.would delay it until they took further evidence. I felt that was
:17:17. > :17:20.the respectful thing for me to do was to delay publication and to hear
:17:21. > :17:25.what the Committee had to say to me. I have given way to him. I am
:17:26. > :17:34.grateful for the effort she has given on the subject. We recognise
:17:35. > :17:39.that appropriate resources being in place to support young people in all
:17:40. > :17:44.other schools, Mr Leonard can be assured that the heart of this
:17:45. > :17:48.strategy will be intolerance of bullying of any young people in
:17:49. > :17:52.schools or in any aspect of our society, or in any situation in our
:17:53. > :17:59.society. The Government will map out how we will take that forward after
:18:00. > :18:03.engagement with stakeholders and the parliamentary Committee. To ask the
:18:04. > :18:05.Scottish Government report requirements and local authorities
:18:06. > :18:11.have to provide children with the basic tools of learning at school.
:18:12. > :18:16.Education authorities have a duty under the education Scotland act
:18:17. > :18:20.1980, to provide books, writing materials, stationery, mathematical
:18:21. > :18:26.instruments, practice material and other articles necessary to enable
:18:27. > :18:29.pupils who receive education through public schools or other
:18:30. > :18:36.arrangements, to take full advantage of education. Thank you for that
:18:37. > :18:39.answer. The statutory duty of councils to provide books and
:18:40. > :18:44.materials, the Cabinet Secretary may be aware that YouTube decisions
:18:45. > :18:51.taken by the independent counsel, Fortrose have had to find some basic
:18:52. > :18:55.school provisions. In light of the election tomorrow, what is the
:18:56. > :18:58.Cabinet Secretary's view on this and how education can be the top
:18:59. > :19:05.priority for the next administration? I reiterate my
:19:06. > :19:10.earlier answer in which statute could not be clearer on this.
:19:11. > :19:16.Education authorities have duty under the education Scotland act to
:19:17. > :19:19.provide books, writing materials, stationery, mathematical materials,
:19:20. > :19:24.practice materials and other resources to allow people is to
:19:25. > :19:30.receive free education. That is the statutory duty. In relation to the
:19:31. > :19:35.resources available, Highland Council for 17-18 received an
:19:36. > :19:42.increase of over ?20 million for the resources available to it, an
:19:43. > :19:49.additional 4.4% increase on its budget in 2016-17. They will be
:19:50. > :19:54.decisions that the Highland Council has to make about the allocation of
:19:55. > :19:57.its resources. That backdrop drop indicates that a very strong
:19:58. > :20:03.settlement has been delivered by the headland council to enable it to
:20:04. > :20:11.properly fund education. Across the Highlands, the has-been 3000 --
:20:12. > :20:16.three million 924000 pounds and people equity funding which has been
:20:17. > :20:20.delivered in schools and Fortrose Academy has received ?30,000. I
:20:21. > :20:23.would hope that the local authority working in partnership with the
:20:24. > :20:26.school would take the necessary resource and decisions against a
:20:27. > :20:33.strong settlement from the Government to fund education. Either
:20:34. > :20:39.that the Cabinet Secretary to the report published by the accounts
:20:40. > :20:41.commission in March that local in Scotland challenges report, they
:20:42. > :20:47.said it spent four people figures that show since 2010, spending in
:20:48. > :20:52.secondary schools by people has fallen by over ?550 and primary
:20:53. > :20:57.schools, it is 500 people -- ?500 per pupil since 2010. That is almost
:20:58. > :21:03.10%. Does the Cabinet Secretary recognise those numbers and does
:21:04. > :21:10.that look the overall funding levels that have been cut by ?1.5 billion.
:21:11. > :21:13.What Mr Johnson needs to look out for is the analysis that the
:21:14. > :21:19.accounts commission undertook. I think it was published... It must be
:21:20. > :21:22.just before the turn of the year where the accounts commission said
:21:23. > :21:26.that the funding settlement for local authorities had been largely
:21:27. > :21:31.on par with the funding settlement received by the Scottish Government.
:21:32. > :21:35.The Scottish Government has treated very fairly local Government within
:21:36. > :21:40.the resources available to the Scottish Government. As I indicated
:21:41. > :21:49.as an example in response to the question that Kay Forbes gave,
:21:50. > :21:52.Highland Council receives an extra 4.4% in 2016-17. And the current
:21:53. > :21:57.financial climate that would be viewed as a strong boost to local
:21:58. > :21:59.authority funding and the Government is delighted to make that available
:22:00. > :22:05.to the Highland Council and any authority and any authority in the
:22:06. > :22:09.country. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide
:22:10. > :22:12.an update on what action it is taking to improve literacy rates.
:22:13. > :22:16.The Scottish Government is taking a wide range of action to improve
:22:17. > :22:19.literacy rates across all age groups. This includes action in the
:22:20. > :22:24.early years through the significant expansion of heavy learning and
:22:25. > :22:27.child care, the relentless focus on literacy and numeracy through the
:22:28. > :22:33.attainment challenge, supported by people equity funding. The expansion
:22:34. > :22:37.of programmes such as the First Minister's Reading challenge. The
:22:38. > :22:39.new literacy and English benchmarks and the international standardised
:22:40. > :22:45.assessments will support robust assessment of young people's
:22:46. > :22:52.process. -- progress. Thank you for the answer. I should have said at
:22:53. > :22:57.the beginning that I do fear members as a dash to the register of
:22:58. > :23:01.interest, I am still a councillor in South Lanarkshire. The last time I
:23:02. > :23:05.get to see that. The reason support in the Times newspaper reveals that
:23:06. > :23:10.children are facing a postcode lottery when it comes to accessing
:23:11. > :23:19.library services. One third of specialist school library staff have
:23:20. > :23:22.been cut since 2010. The chartered Institute of library and information
:23:23. > :23:26.specialist repair themselves to the Cabinet Secretary. Given the decline
:23:27. > :23:30.in professionally staffed libraries, can the Cabinet Secretary explained
:23:31. > :23:33.how his aim of closing the attainment gap between the richest
:23:34. > :23:41.and poorest children in Scotland will be achieved? This is a very
:23:42. > :23:44.emotional afternoon for us all. It is the last time that Monica Lennon
:23:45. > :23:51.will share with us the fact that she is a member of South Lanarkshire
:23:52. > :23:55.Council and I am sure there will be weeping and wailing and gnashing of
:23:56. > :24:00.teeth as a consequence of this auspicious moment being passed. In
:24:01. > :24:04.relation to the substance of her question, I value enormously the
:24:05. > :24:08.role of school libraries. I was recently in the public commissions
:24:09. > :24:16.-- public petitions Committee where a petition was held about the
:24:17. > :24:20.concern of... I took forward a national strategy for public
:24:21. > :24:24.libraries which will be -- will reinforce the view that I hold that
:24:25. > :24:29.school libraries are crucial to the development and capability of young
:24:30. > :24:33.people. If you months ago, the Member for Murray invited me to
:24:34. > :24:37.visit Elgin Academy. When I went there the first place that the
:24:38. > :24:45.headteacher took me was to the library. The purpose of why that was
:24:46. > :24:49.the case... Because the school library had been configured and led
:24:50. > :24:53.by a very effective librarian and designed in a fashion to be the
:24:54. > :25:00.epicentre of the school where many good things happened and many
:25:01. > :25:04.contributions to the young people, the well-being of young people were
:25:05. > :25:11.delivered between older and younger pupils and the Academy. It is one of
:25:12. > :25:15.choice that the school and the 40 have obviously decided to go down
:25:16. > :25:19.that route. Other authorities are taking a different route. I want to
:25:20. > :25:23.come very firmly on the side of the role of libraries within our schools
:25:24. > :25:28.being of significance and value to enhance the learning of young people
:25:29. > :25:32.and to improve literacy which is at the heart of the Government's
:25:33. > :25:38.efforts in closing the attainment gap in Scottish education. For the
:25:39. > :25:42.final time I would like to declare an interest as a councillor on
:25:43. > :25:46.Aberdeen City Council. The Scottish Government's on statistics show that
:25:47. > :25:52.in Aberdeen city, not even half of the pupils reach the expected level
:25:53. > :25:55.of writing by primary seven. Is it not time for the Scottish Government
:25:56. > :25:58.to get back to the day job, making sure that children can read and
:25:59. > :26:04.write properly and admit that under this Government, the implementation
:26:05. > :26:17.of CFCs as many children leaving primary school not properly equipped
:26:18. > :26:20.for secondary school. -- CFE. The departure of prof Thomson from the
:26:21. > :26:26.council in Aberdeen tomorrow, they will be weeping and wailing and
:26:27. > :26:31.gnashing of teeth about other issues handled by Aberdeen City Council in
:26:32. > :26:36.a spectacularly unceremonious fashion public vote. I am coming to
:26:37. > :26:46.the question, Councillor Thompson, as I should paraphrase for last
:26:47. > :26:51.time. The Government has addressed the First Minister with responses to
:26:52. > :26:53.Ross Davidson today on some of the challenges that are experienced in
:26:54. > :26:57.Scottish education and the Government is focused entirely on
:26:58. > :27:02.addressing those. I do not think it is bluntly good enough for Mr
:27:03. > :27:06.Thompson to come here and try to absolve himself of any
:27:07. > :27:10.responsibility or contribution to the process. Mr Thomson has been the
:27:11. > :27:16.vice convener of education for Aberdeen City Council. The statute
:27:17. > :27:21.says that the local authorities are the ones that deliver education. My
:27:22. > :27:25.question for Mr Thompson is, what is he been doing about it? As long
:27:26. > :27:31.service in Aberdeen City Council, what has he done to improve
:27:32. > :27:34.educational performance? Maybe if Mr Thompson had concentrated on his day
:27:35. > :27:36.job and not tried to get other day jobs, he could have made more
:27:37. > :27:48.progress into the bargain. 'S. To ask the Scottish Government
:27:49. > :27:53.whether it will provide an update on what action is taken to make sure
:27:54. > :27:56.that all pupils can take place in extracurricular activities
:27:57. > :28:00.irrespective of background or personal circumstances. We want all
:28:01. > :28:04.young children to be fully included in their learning, making sure that
:28:05. > :28:07.those at risk of being marginalised in education in the classroom or in
:28:08. > :28:12.the wider school experience is fully engaged in the learning as they can
:28:13. > :28:19.be. The 2014 guidance on planning for disabled pupils with the access
:28:20. > :28:22.to education, sets out the activities and school trips, and
:28:23. > :28:29.school sports as learning opportunities should be taken under
:28:30. > :28:35.that act. In a recent Reform Scotland report, it states,
:28:36. > :28:39.extracurricular activities are an important part of a child's
:28:40. > :28:44.development and help them socialise out of the classroom, learn and
:28:45. > :28:48.develop new skills, exercise and helping the development of a well
:28:49. > :28:53.rounded individual. They also hired, and I quote, Scotland what to
:28:54. > :28:57.deliver activities that sport Scotland think should be free of
:28:58. > :29:00.charge. Many local authorities to charge. Does the Cabinet Secretary
:29:01. > :29:04.Italy with was neither charging for this type of activity the very
:29:05. > :29:08.pupils most in need of this type of opportunity are the most likely to
:29:09. > :29:12.be excluded, making it more difficult to close the health and
:29:13. > :29:15.quality gap, the attainment gap, and what can the Government do so that
:29:16. > :29:26.access for all means exactly that? I agree with his point and I agree
:29:27. > :29:33.fundamentally that out-of-school activity can have a profound impact
:29:34. > :29:40.on the achievement of young people, and help them to overcome many
:29:41. > :29:44.difficulties that they may face? When we get into territory which I
:29:45. > :29:47.have explored before with him and some of his colleagues, about what
:29:48. > :29:54.is the right level of direction for government, about what goes on?
:29:55. > :29:57.Because if I start directing, local authorities must do this, must do
:29:58. > :30:01.that, I don't want to put words into the mouths of the Conservatives, but
:30:02. > :30:05.there might be some complaints that I am interfering in local government
:30:06. > :30:08.business. So, there is a sensitive balance to be struck about what
:30:09. > :30:14.should be the level of government direction in this respect. I
:30:15. > :30:19.certainly have no difficulty in supporting the aspirations set out
:30:20. > :30:23.in this question, and I would encourage local authorities, working
:30:24. > :30:28.within the guidance which we have already issued, in 2014, to ensure
:30:29. > :30:41.that the ambitions which Mr Whittle has set out can be realised. Can I
:30:42. > :30:45.remind members, I am the PLO to the Cabinet Secretary? Is governed is
:30:46. > :30:51.investing an additional ?750 million to close the attainment gap, while
:30:52. > :30:57.in England, the Public Accounts Committee has warned of schools
:30:58. > :30:59.having to cut spending, directly affect on extracurricular
:31:00. > :31:03.opportunities, according to headteachers in England. Would the
:31:04. > :31:08.Deputy First Minister agree that if we want to protect our children's
:31:09. > :31:11.education from Tory education cuts, then they need to vote SNP tomorrow
:31:12. > :31:22.in the Local Government Act edge and is? A very brief answer to that! I
:31:23. > :31:28.have to agree! Back in the real world, can I ask, for what reason
:31:29. > :31:34.has there been a 62% reduction in the number of places for
:31:35. > :31:42.postgraduate and diplomas? No such reduction has taken place. . That is
:31:43. > :31:46.an interesting response. We do of course know that there are currently
:31:47. > :31:52.274 vacant primary school teaching posts across Scotland. And we know
:31:53. > :31:55.that many councils and head teachers believe that there will be
:31:56. > :31:59.additional teachers required on top of that as a result of equity
:32:00. > :32:06.funding potentially being spent on more teachers. The universities are
:32:07. > :32:09.saying that they have difficulties in relation to future planning
:32:10. > :32:14.because of a potential reduction in the number of training places. Can
:32:15. > :32:18.the Cabinet Secretary guarantee that not only will there be no reduction
:32:19. > :32:23.in training places available, but that there will be an increase, in
:32:24. > :32:31.order to make up for the shortage of teachers that we have? The point
:32:32. > :32:36.that Mr Fraser makes about the employment, the recruitment of
:32:37. > :32:41.teachers for postgraduate diploma in education is an important
:32:42. > :32:44.contribution to establishing the strength of the teaching population
:32:45. > :32:49.in Scotland. I reiterate my answer from earlier on, that there has been
:32:50. > :32:54.no reduction of 62% in the target number of post graduate faces
:32:55. > :32:59.between the two years quoted. The Government has to go through an
:33:00. > :33:05.exercise with the Teacher Workforce Planning Advisory Group, which looks
:33:06. > :33:09.at a range of factors, including local demand, the number of teachers
:33:10. > :33:13.returning to the profession and the number of students not completing
:33:14. > :33:16.their course, before making any decisions on these targets for
:33:17. > :33:21.future years. That is why the premise of Mr Fraser's question is
:33:22. > :33:27.wrong. I have acknowledged in a previous answer that shortages exist
:33:28. > :33:33.in the number of teachers available. That's why this year I increased the
:33:34. > :33:36.intake into teacher training by 370 places to which we will continue to
:33:37. > :33:42.look at these issues as we plan for the years ahead. I'm acutely aware
:33:43. > :33:45.that as we deploy more equity funding around the country, there
:33:46. > :33:48.will be the possibility of more opportunities for teacher
:33:49. > :33:52.recruitment, and the Government will bear that in mind as we set the
:33:53. > :33:58.target for postgraduate diploma education places. The Cabinet
:33:59. > :34:03.Secretary will be aware that the First Minister put Ruth Davidson in
:34:04. > :34:09.her place when she pointed out that these leaflets show just how much
:34:10. > :34:15.the Conservative Party care about education, despite the fact that
:34:16. > :34:17.they go on about it all the time. Will the Cabinet is a good read
:34:18. > :34:27.agree with me that this disregard for education shows that the
:34:28. > :34:33.Conservatives, are more capable of running a... , as they would say in
:34:34. > :34:37.Glasgow, than they are of running a local authority? I thought he made
:34:38. > :34:41.the point extremely well at question time today. The Government is
:34:42. > :34:46.focused for taking the necessary steps to strengthen education in
:34:47. > :34:50.Scotland. That will be at the heart of our reform agenda. To ask the
:34:51. > :34:56.Scottish governor and what percentage of schools leavers in
:34:57. > :35:05.north Ayrshire in 2016 and renewed in education, went on to training or
:35:06. > :35:09.entered employment? In October 20 94.8% of senior school leavers in
:35:10. > :35:18.north Ayrshire went to a positive destination. SNP policies help young
:35:19. > :35:21.people in north Ayrshire into work, education and training and have
:35:22. > :35:26.delivered the lowest youth unemployment rate in the UK. Planned
:35:27. > :35:29.training cuts will hurt young people further. Does the minister agree
:35:30. > :35:34.with me that voting SNP in the upcoming local and general election
:35:35. > :35:43.is the only way to keep Theresa May in check and make the voice of
:35:44. > :35:47.Scotland heard? Minister, I would recommend you stick to education,
:35:48. > :35:54.rather than voting advice. Of course I will stick to education advice. It
:35:55. > :35:57.is a very good point, they will have seen the figures, they will know
:35:58. > :36:00.that we have made significant progress over the last five years in
:36:01. > :36:06.terms of positive destinations across all socioeconomic groups, but
:36:07. > :36:17.the greatest progress has been amongst the 20%. We know that by
:36:18. > :36:23.2021, some 50,000 families in Scotland could be affected by the
:36:24. > :36:30.two child on tax credits, pushing more young people into poverty
:36:31. > :36:35.directive. In Scotland, we will continue to respond, and as an
:36:36. > :36:43.administration, we have committed ?750 million over these five years,
:36:44. > :36:45.and more than ?4 million for this financial year through pupil equity
:36:46. > :36:50.funding for North Ayrshire. We will do all we can. We need a strong and
:36:51. > :36:58.effective voice in other play is as well. Could the minister confirm
:36:59. > :37:04.that when the positive destination statistics, such as those he just
:37:05. > :37:07.spoke about, as in recorded, school leavers moving into a job on a
:37:08. > :37:13.zero-hours contract are accounted as positive destinations? Well, what I
:37:14. > :37:18.would say to Mr Gray is that we don't have control over employment
:37:19. > :37:23.law. We in Scotland are fortunate that we have the smallest proportion
:37:24. > :37:29.of the workforce on zero-hours contracts, lower than the UK level.
:37:30. > :37:33.Clearly, anyone entering employment is ending up in a positive
:37:34. > :37:38.destination. Mr Gray will well understand our high ambitions for
:37:39. > :37:43.work here in Scotland. We have published our labour market
:37:44. > :37:47.strategy, and job we want to see in the future will be well remunerated
:37:48. > :37:52.and will of course contribute to that fair work challenge, and I look
:37:53. > :37:58.forward to Mr Gray signing up to that progress. For those leaving
:37:59. > :38:00.school who choose not to go to further education, there must be
:38:01. > :38:04.other opportunities available to them. But in North Ayrshire,
:38:05. > :38:12.unemployment is significantly higher than in the rest of the UK recent
:38:13. > :38:15.figures putting it at 11.6%. So, what confidence can make young
:38:16. > :38:20.people of north Ayrshire have in this government, that after ten
:38:21. > :38:23.years, the SNP is really taking the issue of unemployment seriously?
:38:24. > :38:30.Well, they can have a lot more confidence than they can in the UK
:38:31. > :38:37.Government, who, of course, have cut funding available to the Scottish
:38:38. > :38:42.Government by some 87%, resulting in ours having to leverage an
:38:43. > :38:51.additional ?20 million. We are doing a lot more to support young people
:38:52. > :39:01.in Ayrshire and elsewhere and the UK Government is. Thank you very much.