Meeting of the Parliament 26 February 2026 [Draft]
I recognise that the statistics this week demonstrate that there is further work to be done. However, what Mr O’Kane puts on the record—not for the first time—is not a complete demonstration of the picture. Attainment levels are at record highs in literacy and numeracy in Scotland’s schools. The poverty-related attainment gap across primary and secondary literacy and numeracy is at a record low in our country. That is a consequence of the Scottish Government’s commitment to invest in education. In addition to all that, there were reduced gaps in each of last summer’s national 5, higher and advanced higher results, as a consequence of the Government’s interventions.
I simply say to Mr O’Kane that, as part of its agenda in the aftermath of Covid, which has been a hugely disruptive period of our lives in Scotland, the Government is focused on making sure that we support families. We do that by reducing child poverty, which we, in Scotland, are doing, unlike the rest of the United Kingdom. We are also putting the resources in the budget to support the closure of the attainment gap.
Yesterday, Mr O’Kane could not bring himself to vote for the Government’s budget and to invest in all those public services. We will not be deflected by the empty rhetoric of Mr O’Kane and his Labour colleagues.