Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 03 June 2021
Thank you, Presiding Officer. I congratulate you on your new position, the cabinet secretary on her new role, and the minister on his new position.
As we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic, we must ensure that we build back better than before. That also applies to education. Our children and young people, as well as our local authorities’ teaching and support staff, have risen above and beyond the challenge of online learning, and have been extremely resilient while dealing with the changing Covid restrictions. For that, I applaud each and every one of them. Education has been a priority for the Scottish Government and I am glad to see that it will continue to be so, both in the first 100 days and throughout the entire term of the Government.
Ensuring access to education is so important, and I welcome the Scottish Government’s commitment to begin work to ensure that all children have access to a digital device—whether that be a laptop or a tablet—to allow them to work and learn from home. That will go a long way in assisting those families who would simply not have been able to afford a device for their children, and in ensuring that no child is disadvantaged or cannot do their homework just because of their household circumstances.
I thank the Scottish Government for not only taking stigma away from those families, but making the commitment to levelling the playing field for all our children across the country—first through the introduction of the baby box, then through the expansion to 1,140 hours of early learning and childcare, and now through access to digital services.
On that theme, it is incredibly important that all children go to school ready to learn. That means not being hungry. I applaud the Scottish Government’s plan to extend free breakfasts and lunches to primary 4 pupils, with a view to expanding the provision to all our primary school pupils. That will mean that no pupil has to start their day hungry, which again shows the Government’s commitment to cutting down the barriers to education and to levelling the playing field for all our children across Scotland.
Given that this is my first speech, I feel that it is only right that I focus on my constituency. Aberdeen Donside is a diverse area, which lies to the north of the granite city, from Kingswells to Woodside, Dyce to the Brig O’ Don, and aahin in atween. It is the honour of my life to have been elected the MSP for Aberdeen Donside, the area in which I have lived and raised a family over the past 30-plus years. I thank the good folk of Aberdeen Donside for putting their faith in me, and I pledge to them all to do my very best for them, for our constituency, and for our country, over the next five years.
I also pay tribute to Mark McDonald for all his tremendous work during his time as member for Aberdeen Donside. He most certainly did a fantastic job of representing his constituents, and I wish him all the best for the future.
I am the third SNP MSP to hold the seat, and I pay a personal tribute to the late Brian Adam, who first won the seat for the SNP back in 2003. I first met Brian not long after I joined the party, in 1990. At the time, he was the local councillor for the area in which I live. He went on to be a regional MSP, until he won the Donside seat in 2003. I am proud to say that I have followed in his footsteps. I am a councillor for the same area, and am now also proud to be the MSP.
My constituents have very long memories and, out on the campaign trail, I was regularly asked how I planned to live up to Brian’s legacy. My response was, and is, simple: Brian was my friend and mentor; he taught me everything I know; and I will always aspire to live up to his high standards. To Brian’s family, I say “thank you”—for their continued support, kind words and good wishes.
I am proud of the Scottish Government and the pledges that it has made. The national digital academy will benefit so many people who, like me, for whatever reason, did not finish their education. What an opportunity! How I wish that I had had that opportunity, while my daughter was young, to go back and finish what I had started in school. Enabling people to access education to a higher level, at any age, no matter their caring responsibilities or work commitments, in their own time and at their own pace, will be transformational for so many people.
Education is a right and should be easily accessible to all. The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that further and higher education remain free for all and that children and families are supported to improve educational outcomes. Providing a device for every child is huge: it takes away stigma and goes a long way towards ensuring that no child is left behind or left out because of family circumstances.