SNP accused of spinning report on poverty

Labour has accused the Scottish Government of attempting to water down an independent report from its poverty adviser which highlighted cuts to further education.

Correspondence released underfreedomofinformation laws shows that civil servants pushed back early drafts of Naomi Eisenstadt’s second report to the First Minister. An early draft stated that “free university tuition is a fantastic advantage for those who go on to higher education. But investment in further education and the college sector has not kept pace”.

Officials objected to the wording and the text was changed for the final version. A Scottish Government spokesman said: “The information released reflects Naomi Eisenstadt’s request to Scottish Government officials to check the accuracy of her draft report.”