General Question Time – in the Scottish Parliament at on 9 May 2024.
Marie McNair
Scottish National Party
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what work it is doing to ensure that teachers get permanent contracts. (S6O-03412)
Jenny Gilruth
Scottish National Party
Although the employment of teachers is a matter for local authorities, we are providing local authorities with an additional £145.5 million in this year’s budget to protect teacher numbers. That will provide assurance of dedicated funding and should remove any uncertainty that is a barrier to councils employing staff on permanent contracts.
Marie McNair
Scottish National Party
I raise the issue on behalf of one of my constituents. I welcome the Cabinet secretary’s acknowledgement of the importance of the matter in ensuring that we have the best possible teacher resource in our schools. Scotland has the lowest pupil teacher ratios in state-maintained schools and the highest starting rate for qualified teachers in the United Kingdom. Does the cabinet secretary agree that such matters need to continue to be prioritised to ensure that teachers get the support that they need to provide an excellent teaching environment in our schools?
Jenny Gilruth
Scottish National Party
I agree with the sentiment that is behind the member’s question. As the member has alluded to, the Government continues to value our teaching profession, which is why Scotland has the best-paid teachers in comparison with anywhere else in the UK and, of course, the lowest pupil teacher ratio. However, we need to do more. I am determined that we will make progress in closing the poverty-related attainment gap. That is why we have provided an additional £145 million in this year’s budget to protect teacher numbers.
For the member’s information, I have just come from an instructive meeting with the Educational Institute of Scotland where we talked about the issue and some of the solutions that it has suggested for how we might provide better protection. I know from experience that there are various practices in relation to teacher recruitment across the country. It is really important that our teachers, who are supported through their training by the Scottish Government, can flourish in their teaching careers. That is why the issue remains a focus for me. I have asked the strategic board for teacher education to provide me with further advice, and I would be happy to write to the member with more detail to provide to her constituent.
Question Time is an opportunity for MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask Government Ministers questions. These questions are asked in the Chamber itself and are known as Oral Questions. Members may also put down Written Questions. In the House of Commons, Question Time takes place for an hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after Prayers. The different Government Departments answer questions according to a rota and the questions asked must relate to the responsibilities of the Government Department concerned. In the House of Lords up to four questions may be asked of the Government at the beginning of each day's business. They are known as 'starred questions' because they are marked with a star on the Order Paper. Questions may also be asked at the end of each day's business and these may include a short debate. They are known as 'unstarred questions' and are less frequent. Questions in both Houses must be written down in advance and put on the agenda and both Houses have methods for selecting the questions that will be asked. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P1 at the UK Parliament site.
The cabinet is the group of twenty or so (and no more than 22) senior government ministers who are responsible for running the departments of state and deciding government policy.
It is chaired by the prime minister.
The cabinet is bound by collective responsibility, which means that all its members must abide by and defend the decisions it takes, despite any private doubts that they might have.
Cabinet ministers are appointed by the prime minister and chosen from MPs or peers of the governing party.
However, during periods of national emergency, or when no single party gains a large enough majority to govern alone, coalition governments have been formed with cabinets containing members from more than one political party.
War cabinets have sometimes been formed with a much smaller membership than the full cabinet.
From time to time the prime minister will reorganise the cabinet in order to bring in new members, or to move existing members around. This reorganisation is known as a cabinet re-shuffle.
The cabinet normally meets once a week in the cabinet room at Downing Street.
