SNP and Tories are letting down next generation

IT MIGHT be a cliche but it is no exaggeration to say that the young people of Scotland are our future.

It is the young people of Scotland who will be the nurses, doctors, teachers and wealth creators of the next chapter of Scotland’s story. We owe them the chance to grow up in a country that keeps them safe and nurtures their talent. As a father, I know how much Scots want a brighter future for their children. But the sad fact is I am no longer confident that the children of today are growing up in a better world than the previous generation. And this week, the scale of the challenge we face to improve the lives of our young people after 17 years of the SNP and 14 years of the Tories has been laid bare. Poverty rates have remained unacceptably high, with the SNP failing to lift children out of poverty and now on track to miss its own legal duties as well. SNP incompetence and Tory economic chaos have led to thousands of young Scots growing up in poverty – this is a national scandal. In our schools too, young people are being let down. A third of pupils are now persistently absent – with the rate rising to over half of kids in some of our most deprived communities. At the same time, the number of children with additional support needs has soared. But what has the SNP’s response been? To cut teacher numbers, with fewer specialist ASN teachers in schools, and 1000 fewer teachers overall compared with when the SNP came to power in 2007. And in our NHS too, our children are being failed, with more than 10,000 waiting for the medical care they need, and mental health care in disarray. One mum, Ami, told me the struggles faced by her threeyear-old son Cody. He has been repeatedly diagnosed with tonsillitis and

The Braw Wee Shop at New College Lanarkshire is run by young people with learning disabilities, providing them with opportunities and work experience.

I loved meeting some of the young people there last week to learn more about this fantastic shop and its approach to inclusion and employment.

his enlarged tonsils obstruct more than 75 per cent of his airway, making it difficult to eat, drink and even breathe.

She told me that she has to lie awake next to him during the night because his breathing stops and she has to nudge him to get it to restart.

She had to fight to get Cody referred to a specialist but has been told that even an urgent referral for treatment will take three years.

Ami has had to make the difficult decision to go private, borrowing almost £5000 from her family.

In every area of responsibility for this SNP government children are being failed, with catastrophic consequences. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Labour will invest in our NHS, driving down waiting lists so young people get the care they need. We will tackle the scandal of in-work poverty with new rules to end insecure work and make sure work pays a wage people can live on.

And we will make sure our education system creates opportunity for all, equipping our young people for the jobs of the future.

That is the change Labour are offering – and for the sake of the next generation and Scotland’s future – it is the change we must deliver.