John Swinney was today accused of ditching another 2021 SNP election pledge to young people.
At FMQs, Douglas Ross cited ONS figures showing that 52,700 16-24-year-olds in Scotland – one in ten – are economically inactive and not in education, highlighting the failure of the SNP’s Young Person’s Guarantee.
It comes in the wake of the First Minister last week dropping his pledge to provide universal free school meals to all primary pupils.
The Scottish Conservative leader also pointed to an OECD report published this week, which criticised the SNP’s record on preparing young people for the workplace.
The report stated there were “multiple barriers” to developing skills in Scotland, that the SNP Government’s engagement with employers was “limited in outreach” and that careers agencies “remain fragmented”.
In conclusion, the OECD described the link between the SNP’s skills policies and economic development as “weak”.
Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said: “In their 2021 manifesto, the SNP pledged a Young Person’s Guarantee to ensure that everyone between 16 and 24 would have the opportunity of education, training or a job.
“Yet official figures show that 52,700 Scots aged 16 to 24 are economically inactive and not in education. That is one in 10 – and the highest figure since records began.
“It’s clear that the Young Person’s Guarantee is just another broken SNP promise.
“This week’s OECD report – which the First Minister appears not to have read – is damning on the SNP’s record on preparing young people for the workplace.
“But it’s not the only report this week highlighting how weak the SNP are on delivering for young people. Today Audit Scotland criticised their funding cuts to Scotland’s colleges.
“Under the SNP, we have a skills strategy that does not help people to get jobs, an education reform agenda that doesn’t lead to any reforms, colleges that are bust and a Young Person’s Guarantee that doesn’t guarantee anything.
“How is John Swinney the First Minister going to do a better job on any of this than John Swinney the Education Secretary?”
Notes to editors
The OECD Report is available here: https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/future-proofing-the-skills-system-in-the-glasgow-city-region-scotland-united-kingdom_5f36b5db-en.html
Key ONS figures can be seen here and on attached spreadsheet: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk
The SNP’S 2007 Skills strategy is available here: https://cldstandardscouncil.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Skills-for-Scotland.pdf
Graeme Dey said that the work of the Young Person’s Guarantee was being ‘mainstreamed’ across government. Dey said: ‘The Scottish Government launched the Young Person’s Guarantee in November 2020, with the aim of protecting young people against the immediate economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic… We have now mainstreamed this work across Government, with activity across education, skills and employability supporting young people into opportunities.’ (Written Question S6W-28947, 30 August 2024, link).
ENDS