The first was the use of mobile phones in classrooms. I believe there is now overwhelming evidence that mobile phones are fuelling bullying, distraction and violence in our schools.
I am also of the view that headteachers need clear backing: no phones in classrooms unless there’s a real need. That is why Scottish Labour is proposing to ban them in classrooms. This would relieve pressure on staff and help create safer spaces for young people to learn and thrive.
I highlighted this in Parliament during a recent Labour-led debate and urged the Cabinet Secretary for Education to act now and give headteachers and their staff the support they need to take action on mobile phones in classrooms.
The second issue I raised in Parliament was the latest Joseph Rowntree Foundation report on poverty in Scotland. It shows the child poverty rate is stuck at 23 per cent – largely unchanged since 2021. Shockingly, three-quarters of the children living in poverty are in working households.
The report also states that poverty is deepening, with nearly one in 10 people in extreme poverty, that in-work poverty is increasingly more common, and poverty amongst disabled people also remains high.
Finally, I challenged the First Minister on his Government’s slow progress on delivering The Promise – a pledge made to improve the lives of care-experienced children and adults by 2030.
This followed the publication of a report by Audit Scotland and the Accounts Commission which found that plans have progressed too slowly and there is confusion over how organisations should deliver it.
John Swinney accepted responsibility for the failings identified in the report. Now he needs to step up, make the changes required to keep The Promise and give every care-experienced child the best possible start in life.
