Tag: Scottish Greens

P1 testing: Heed the evidence, say Greens

Risk of Results Data Being ‘Invalidated’

Scottish Greens education spokesperson Ross Greer MSP has called on the Scottish Government to listen to the experts, after the Scottish Parliament’s Education Committee heard a number of concerns regarding the Scottish National Standardised Assessments at its session yesterday.

In response to a question from Mr Greer, Professor Lindsay Paterson confirmed that the differential in the age of Primary one pupils being tested – between four and six – ‘invalidates’ the use of this data beyond the level of the individual pupil, particularly given the shortage of staff who have sufficient statistical experience within local councils.

On the issue of these staff having been cut from councils over recent years, Dr Keir Bloomer of the Royal Society of Edinburgh said: “Local authorities have a declining capacity to offer support to schools.”

The committee also heard from Professor Louise Hayward that the test are extremely narrow, and do not yield a wide range of information.

Ross Greer said: “The already thin evidence base for the government’s Primary One tests is falling apart under the most basic of scrutiny.

“There is a huge difference between a four and a half year old child taking this test at the start of the school year and another pupil who takes it late in the year, by which point they could be six years old.

“Professor Paterson was clear that this significant difference and an inability to control for it when using the data, for example at school level, would simply invalidate it.

“An evidence-led approach in the first place would have avoided so many of these problems but the SNP ploughed on without one. It’s time that they listen to experts, to teachers and to parents, like any responsible government should.”

Music tuition: Greer challenges Swinney on private subsidy

Green MSP Ross Greer has challenged Education Secretary John Swinney to justify his Government’s long-running subsidy of around £1.2 million to the fee-paying St Mary’s Music School in Edinburgh, at a time when many councils are axing free music tuition in schools due to budget cuts passed down by the Scottish Government. [1]

In an exchange during a meeting of the Scottish Parliament’s Education and Skills Committee, Mr Greer argued that by grant funding a small number of places at a private school, the Government risked exacerbating a deep sense of inequality – highlighting the evidence previously given by one young person who said the situation was ‘approaching Victorian levels’ of inequality. [2]

Scottish Greens Education spokesperson, Ross Greer MSP said: “We’ve heard countless stories about how cuts to council budgets are driving young people from less privileged backgrounds away from learning an instrument, with one young woman telling us this is approaching Victorian levels of inequality.

“So I just can’t see how the government justifies giving over one million pounds of public money every year to a small private school, without any clear assessment of whether that is value for money. Instead, for example, it could increase funding for the four centres of musical excellence that serve local authority schools.”

[1] http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx?SearchType=Advance&ReferenceNumbers=S5W-03692&ResultsPerPage=10
[2] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-46126988

Benefit Cuts: Green MSP Condemns Tories For Targeting Women

UK Gov Cuts Target Women: Green MSP Condemns Tories In Holyrood Debate


The UK Government’s cuts to benefits target women and children, and must be reversed, according to Scottish Greens social security spokesperson Alison Johnstone MSP.

Speaking in this week’s Holyrood debate – Impact of UK Government Welfare Cuts and Universal Credit on Poverty – Alison Johnstone, Scottish Green MSP for Lothian, said: “Cuts to our social security system, including to Universal Credit, are taking money out of the pockets and wallets of some of our poorest households. As the Institute for Fiscal Studies notes, Universal Credit is quite deliberately creating millions of losers. Continue reading Benefit Cuts: Green MSP Condemns Tories For Targeting Women

Delayed discharges up: Greens urge social care staff boost

Scottish Ministers are being urged by the Scottish Greens to “fast-track action” on social care staffing, as new figures show a further rise in patients stuck in hospital – the vast majority of them waiting for social care. [1]

Continue reading Delayed discharges up: Greens urge social care staff boost

Local democracy report embarrasses Scotland, says Wightman

Scottish ministers must respond to an embarrassing report that claims that Scotland is the ‘least locally democratic country in Europe’ by devolving new powers to councils, says a Green MSP.

Andy Wightman, the Scottish Greens’ local government spokesperson, says his party supports the Common Weal report’s recommendation for a new tier of councils in Scotland, insisting that two, and in many cases three tiers, are typical in other European countries.

Mr Wightman, a Green MSP for Lothian, said: “This report (see below) adds to the wealth of evidence highlighting the poor state of local democracy in Scotland. Its findings are welcome and while many will perceive its recommendation to create another tier of local democracy in Scotland to be radical, having just a single tier of councils goes against the norm across much of Europe.

“Scotland’s status as the ‘least locally democratic country in Europe’ is not one to be proud of, in fact it’s embarrassing. Ministers at Holyrood can however revive local democracy by devolving more powers to councils and require them to include local communities in decision making.

“Local government needs substantial and far-reaching reform to make it more local and more democratic and we’ll continue to honour our manifesto commitment to challenge ministers on their slow progress.”

Development Councils

Wightman: Planning Bill changes will help tackle housing crisis

Changes agreed this week (24 Oct) to the Scottish Government’s Planning Bill will help tackle Scotland’s housing crisis by making land for house-building more affordable and by better regulating short-term lets, according to Scottish Greens housing spokesperson Andy Wightman MSP.

Scottish Greens have long campaigned for reform of the planning system, to counter the current set-up where the price of land rockets once it receives planning permission. Continue reading Wightman: Planning Bill changes will help tackle housing crisis