Chamber and committees

Thank you. My view is that it is a big ask and that it is quite uncomfortable for young people to sit at their desks in a classroom all day with a face covering on. Local young people have raised that with me. However, I have finished my questions, convener.

That is helpful. Greg Dempster, do you have any comments to make?

I am happy to hear from anybody about whether the promise that every young person would have access to an electronic device and the associated internet connection has been fulfilled.

I think that many parents, young people and teachers get frustrated at promises being made, before an election, that things will be free and at the suggestion that things will happen quickly, but they then—despite what I am sure are best efforts—take a long time. However, I will not push you on the political point again.

My main question is about the use of face masks in schools. Do you and the organisations that you represent support the indefinite use of face masks, or are we at a point in the response to Covid-19 at which we should look to remove them as quickly as possible?

I am happy for anyone to come in.

My concern is that we have reached a point at which almost all the other regulations and mitigations are being pulled back but education seems to be at the bottom of the pile. We could argue that young people have faced the greatest disruption. Are parents concerned about that? We have heard that devices are not getting out to young people. Not much is being done on the exam front; that seems to have been left to quite late in the year. We have seen other restrictions go, but young people are being asked to continue to wear face masks. Is that a fair observation?

Before I move to my main line of questioning, I will come back to the topic of information technology devices, which has already been covered, although I do not want to return to the issue of touch typing, which we have covered at length. Before the election, John Swinney promised that every young person in Scotland would have a device that would be connected to the internet, and I am more concerned about whether that is the witnesses’ experience of what has happened. I am not clear that that has been the case in my constituency. Figures suggest that only one in five young people has access to a device.

Therefore, would it be fair to say that that is yet another example of the gap between the Scottish Government’s rhetoric and the complexity of the task that it asks local authorities to deliver on the ground?

I thank Martin Whitfield for bringing the debate to the chamber, and for his thoughtful contribution—such contributions have already become a hallmark of his time in Parliament. I doubt that I will meet that standard or test myself, but I am pleased to speak in the debate and to voice the Conservatives’ support for his motion.

We have already touched on some important points, but I want to say up front that all families struggle. Being a parent is not easy. Being a carer is not easy. Of course there are those who face profound and difficult challenges, but it is important to remember that all families deserve our support and the support of the Government, its agencies and the many charities that do tremendous work.

During the pandemic, we saw how dependent we are on those third sector organisations, and we all owe them a debt of gratitude. The same applies to those in underfunded departments in our local authorities who struggle and who, when many have been working from home, have continued to go out and work with vulnerable families to make sure that they can eat and heat their homes and, most important of all, that someone is there to listen.

Rona Mackay’s point in that regard was excellent. That listening ear must be non-judgmental and helpful, and support must be provided. Most important of all, the support must be consistent. We cannot put services in place and then pull them away. Pam Duncan-Glancy was right to say that, if people bounce in and out of crisis situations, we will not find a long-term fix. We all need to find the political will to address that.

Often, good support is provided during pregnancy or when people are about to have children. National health service classes are offered, although the fact that some of those have been provided online in the past few years has presented challenges for many new mothers, who have struggled to make connections and to find the support networks that they need.

The support that is provided at that stage often starts to drop off. Although support is provided by health visitors, that can often be sporadic and might be provided only at set points to meet arbitrary cut-off dates. That is where consistency is important. People need support and advice right the way through the development of the children who they care for.

I am running out of time, but I would like to take a moment to reflect on some of the work that I have seen being done in my Dumfriesshire constituency by Aberlour, in particular, which provides many services to help and support people, from homework clubs through to drop-ins. It is clear that the staff who are involved in those projects care passionately about the people whom they work with.

It is important that we ensure that provision is consistent across the country. Every member of the Parliament will be able to point to good projects and good practice in their constituency or region, but it is equally the case that many young people and families fall through the net. Until there is consistency of provision, we cannot consider it job done, no matter how much money—new or otherwise—is announced.

To ask the First Minister what deadline the Scottish Government has set for making any further changes to this year’s SQA examinations process. (S6F-00639)