Part of Urgent Question – in the Scottish Parliament at 4:43 pm on 2 October 2025.
Stephen Kerr
Conservative
4:43,
2 October 2025
Colleges Scotland makes it clear that a cut to college funding of a fifth is damaging life chances and shrinking the skills base on which Scotland’s economy depends. At a time when we need a highly skilled, future-proofed workforce to drive growth and prosperity, why is the Government funding colleges on the cheap? Why is the Government cutting funding? Will the Minister admit that that failure is not only harming individual students and their families but actively sabotaging Scotland’s economic future?
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
