Chamber and committees

Thank you, convener.

As I have highlighted previously, the current budget is taking place in a turbulent economic context. The Scottish Government is not immune from that turbulence, and we continue to take decisions that will achieve the greatest impact on the outcomes that we are seeking to achieve. At a macro scale, that means adopting a firm focus on tackling child poverty, creating a wellbeing economy with a just transition to net zero and ensuring the sustainability of first-class public services.

With those outcomes in mind, the committee will be aware of my recent statement regarding our commitment to protect teacher and support staff numbers, and the current number of learning hours for children. As I said in the chamber, I remain grateful

“to our colleagues in local government for their dedication to the delivery of a first-class education for our children and young people. For example, we remain close to record levels of teacher numbers, and our pupil teacher ratio remains historically low, at 13.2. Last year, we witnessed the biggest single-year decrease in the attainment gap in primary numeracy and literacy levels since records began”.—[Official Report, 7 February 2023; c 25.]

Equally, I understand the difficult budgetary choices that local government faces. However, it is my responsibility, as education secretary, to ensure that we have in place the fundamentals to build on the current success. That is why we have funded new financial commitments around the funding that we have provided for teacher numbers and pupil support staff. In particular, that is to at least maintain teacher numbers at current levels in the year ahead, while working towards the delivery of our commitment to increase teacher numbers by 3,500 by the end of this session of Parliament; to maintain the number of school support staff at their current levels; and to continue to ensure that places are available for probationary teachers on the teacher induction scheme who need them.

In addition, the committee will have seen the reports that some councils were considering a reduction to the length of the school week. There is already statutory provision that pupils must receive 190 school days per year, but I am concerned that a reduction in learning hours would materially reduce pupil attainment and wellbeing. For that reason, I will commence the provision in the Education (Scotland) Act 2016 that will enable ministers to set the minimum number of learning hours in a school year. Following thorough consultation, I will bring forward regulations that will specify the minimum number of learning hours per annum and effectively provide a statutory basis for the pupil week. There is currently some limited variation in delivery across Scotland. That has arisen for a range of reasons, and it will need to be fully explored through the consultation, and considered before regulations are laid. Those regulations will be subject to affirmative parliamentary procedure.

Finally, I take the opportunity to update the committee briefly on the teacher pay negotiations. Notwithstanding financial challenges, the Scottish Government has demonstrated our commitment to teachers to provide a fair pay offer in 2022-23 and is now providing further additional funding to enable the two-year pay deal offer to teachers. That offer will provide the most experienced teachers at the top of the main grade pay scale—70 per cent of all teachers—with a pay increase of more than £5,000 in comparison with January 2022.

In comparison to the previous offer, the new offer significantly increases the financial envelope, with an overall cumulative increase of 11.83 per cent for the majority of staff over two years. Although some other unions are currently consulting their members, the committee will have seen that the Educational Institute of Scotland has already rejected that enhancement. Although I am obviously disappointed, it goes without saying that the current disruption is extremely difficult for young people, parents and carers, and I will continue to do everything that I can to secure a deal that is fair and affordable for all.

Yes, and I would be happy to provide written detail on that. As I said, there was no dubiety in public or private with Government, Parliament or COSLA about how the money would be spent.

Yes.

The £100 million is part of the settlement for next year, 2023-24, but the Deputy First Minister made it clear that there were late changes to the 2022-23 budget that allowed him to use some of that to assist with the 2023-24 budget.

The money is in the budget for next year.

It now has to be found to be spent on teachers’ pay.

I will have to find that money in year to assist with the pay offer. I go back to the point that I have made all along in the teachers’ pay dispute that, if we increase the capacity for local government to improve its offer as the employer, the money needs to be found and that is not without consequence. That money will be found from the education and skills budget.

Well, I will have to analyse that and make those decisions in year to ensure that the education and skills budget balances. Clearly, though, Mr Kerr, you have been demanding that I take action to improve the pay offer. I have made it clear to you every single time that the only way in which that can be done is by the money being increased—

No, it is just numeracy.

We will have to work through that in-year.