Meeting of the Parliament 17 February 2026 [Draft]
I am sure that Mr Whitfield and I both have fond memories of the many in-service training days that we spent as teachers. I draw his attention to amendment 21, in which, under the requirement in proposed new section 9C(5)(a) of the 1980 act,
“Ministers must publish guidance issued under subsection (1) … within … 12 months”.
That speaks to the broader point of the requirement to consult the mandatory consultees who are also stipulated in Elena Whitham’s amendment 21. I hope that that gives him some degree of comfort.
For the reasons that I have set out, I cannot support amendments 22 and 22A. I would, however, be happy to consider looking at how the school handbook regulations might be updated alongside the development of the accompanying guidance, to ensure that parents and pupils get that important information in relation to religious observance and their associated rights that sit alongside that, so that they can make informed decisions accordingly.
Paul O’Kane’s amendment 24, which we have heard commentary about from members this afternoon, provides that the changes that will be made to the 1980 act by part 1 of the bill would have no effect on
“section 16 or 21 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980”
or on
“section 18 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1918.”
The amendment therefore includes reference to a provision that has not been law for more than half a century. It might create a level of confusion by giving the false impression that the modifications will, in some way, affect those or other unreferenced provisions in legislation, which they will not.
However, I appreciate that amendment 24 likely aims—as we have already heard this afternoon—to give reassurance in response to concerns from the denominational sector that the bill will undermine the existing protections for denominational schools. To reassure Pauline McNeill and other members, I again put on the record the fact that the Government remains unequivocal in its support for denominational schools. We very much recognise the vital role that those schools play, in relation to religious observance and religious education in those settings. That will be evident in the Government’s position on a number of amendments that will provide clarity, and it will also have been evident from my consistent engagement with the Scottish Catholic Education Service throughout the passage of the bill. I again say that SCES will, of course, be part of the mandatory consultation that is set out in Elena Whitham’s amendment 21.