13 January 2009
Immediate release

MURRAY BACKS CAMPAIGN TO STOP DAMAGING CUTS TO SCHOOLS

Local MSP Elaine Murray is backing the Educational Institute of Scotland’s "Why must our children pay?" campaign after figures released by the Scottish Parliament Information Centre show that Dumfries and Galloway is facing a £8.1m cut to its budget.

The campaign aims to promote the cause of Scottish education and protect the funding of Scotland’s schools and colleges. The EIS, Scotland’s largest teaching union, are demanding that Scotland’s pupils and students should not be forced to pay for the mistakes of others by having their education damaged by cuts.

Official budget tables published by the Scottish Parliament Information Centre show that the share of the total Scottish Government budget provided to local government has fallen from 34.7% in 2006-07 to 33.9% in 2010-11. For Dumfries and Galloway Council this budget cut amounts to 8.1 million, which is equivalent to the cost of employing 270 newly qualified teachers.

Elaine Murray MSP said: "The cut of £8m is a blow to Dumfries and Galloway as it could have employed 270 teachers in our region’s schools. It would have safeguarded valuable jobs and improved the teaching of our children.

"The SNP have already cut the number of teachers in our area and their attack on our Council’s budget means more reductions look likely. Education is so important, it’s key to the economic prosperity of Dumfries and Galloway and Scotland." 

Elaine Murray has signed a motion put down in the Scottish Parliament by Labour’s Schools spokesperson calling on MSPs to give their backing to the EIS’s "Why must our children pay" campaign.

"I am backing the EIS campaign to help ensure Scotland’s education system is properly supported and adequately resourced. I am encouraging all my colleagues to do the same. I hope the Scottish Government and all MSPs will realise that there is a very real threat facing Scottish education and we must act now. "

ENDS
 
CONTACT- ANDREW MACKENZIE 07769206856

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. According to the Scottish Parliament Information Centre it costs around £30,000 to employ a newly qualified teacher, including employment costs.

A teacher's salary for the first year after probation would be at Point 1 on the main grade scale, which is currently £25,113 as of April 2009, increasing by 2.4% to £25,716 in April 2010. They also confirmed that employers' national insurance and pension contributions are calculated at 22% for the purpose of apportioning funding. Therefore, the total cost to a local authority to employ a post-probationary teacher for the first year would be £30,637.86.

Teachers salary scales in full are available from the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers' website:

http://www.snct.org.uk/wiki/index.php?title=Appendix_2.1

2. Link to SPICe tables that show % share of total budget:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/research/briefings-09/SB09-66DraftBudget2010-11a.xls

3.

Note: The percentage of the total received by local authorities is based on the allocations that local authorities received in 2009-10.

4. Text of motion from Ken Macintosh, Labour’s Schools spokesman in the Scottish Parliament

Why Must Our Children Pay?
 
That the Parliament supports the Educational Institute of Scotland in their campaign "Why Must Our Children Pay" to promote Scottish education and to protect the funding of schools and colleges; recognises that Scotland's pupils and students should not be forced to pay for the mistakes of others by having their education damaged due to budget reductions; deplores the loss of almost 2,500 teachers over the last two years and the similar decline in numbers of support staff; expresses alarm at the cuts made in education budgets and classroom resources across the country at a time of vital curricular reform; agrees that in times of economic difficulty it is even more important that young people are encouraged to stay longer in education and training; recognises that it is the countries which invest in education and training that reap the rewards in terms of jobs and economic prosperity; and calls on the Scottish Government to ensure our education system is properly supported and adequately resourced allowing all our young people to reach their potential.
 
5. Further information about the EIS's campaign can be found on the EIS's website: www.eis.org.uk.