Nicola Sturgeon’s obsession with independence has led to a lost generation in our schools, Kezia Dugdale has said.
Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale will visit Better World Books in Dunfermline today to highlight the SNP’s woeful record on education.
Recent figures show standards in reading, writing and numeracy have all fallen during the SNP’s decade of division, including:
· There are 4000 fewer teachers and 1000 fewer school support staff since the SNP came to office in 2007
· There are 700 vacancies in our schools that will take at least three years to fill
· Class sizes are among the highest in the developed world
· In literacy, the gap between the richest pupils and the rest has not closed
· Standards in reading and writing have fallen since 2012
· In numeracy, standards have fallen and the gap between the richest and the rest increased
Ms Dugdale said voters have the chance on June 8 to tell Nicola Sturgeon to drop her obsession with a divisive second independence referendum and instead fix the mess she has made of our schools.
Speaking ahead of the visit, Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale said:
“Nicola Sturgeon claims education is her top priority – but these figures prove all she cares about is independence.
“During the SNP’s decade of division, we have seen nothing but declining standards and growing class sizes.
“SNP neglect has led to a lost generation of Scottish children who are simply not getting the education they need and deserve.
“Voters in Scotland and across the UK have the chance on June 8 to tell Nicola Sturgeon to stop obsessing about independence and get on with the job of fixing the mess she has made of our schools.
“A Labour government would invest in education and stand for the many, not the few.”
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