‘Major U-turn’ on Named Person

The Scottish Government has been forced into a “100% climbdown” on controversial plans to assign a named person to every child, say campaigners.

John Swinney, the education secretary, has outlined changes to the Named Person legislation after a rethink was demanded by the Supreme Court.

Under the new bill, authorities will have a duty to consider if the sharing of information will “promote, support or safeguard the wellbeing of a child or young person”. They will also be required to ensure the sharing is compatible with data protection, human rights and confidentiality laws.

The SNP Government’s Named Person scheme would see a single point of contact, usually a teacher or health visitor, looking out for the welfare of each child in Scotland. The changes were in response to a legal challenge to the Supreme Court, which ruled parts of the policy concerned with information-sharing were “incompatible” with human rights laws. Mr Swinney said the new measures would bring “consistency, clarity and coherence” to the scheme.

Simon Calvert, of the No To Named Person campaign, said the measures were a “100% climbdown” on plans to allow the sharing of information about children “almost without restriction”.

Liz Smith, for the Scottish Conservatives, said the policy is a “huge mistake” and explains why the Government has been “forced into a major U-turn”.