Latest news with #Questions
Scotsman
4 days ago
- Politics
- Scotsman
Swinney: Excluding disruptive pupils risks pushing them into organised crime
The First Minister defending guidance saying the measure should be a 'last resort' Sign up to our Politics newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Excluding disruptive pupils from school risks pushing them into the hands of organised crime, John Swinney has warned. The First Minister said such measures had 'consequences' as he defended new guidance saying it should only be a 'last resort'. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad But Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said a stricter approach is necessary to restore discipline in schools. John Swinney during First Minister's Questions at the Scottish Parliament | PA He accused Mr Swinney of 'virtually' stopping exclusions, causing discipline to collapse and turning teachers into social workers. 'We believe in exclusions for violence because they protect staff and pupils, and because they work,' he said. Mr Findlay ridiculed new guidance for schools on how to deal with violent and aggressive behaviour from pupils as 'tedious, hand-wringing nonsense'. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Teaching unions and opposition parties have been urging the Scottish Government to do more to tackle violence and poor behaviour in schools. In March, a survey by the NASUWT union found 83 per cent of teachers believed pupil violence and aggression had increased in the last year. Speaking during First Minister's Questions in Holyrood, Mr Swinney said it was 'palpably false' to claim he had stopped exclusions. He said there were 11,676 exclusions in Scottish schools in 2022/23, the last year for which figures are available. 'The guidance is crystal clear that exclusions are part of the approach that can be taken, but I'm making it clear today that exclusions can have negative consequences for young people,' he said. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Mr Swinney said excluded pupils are no longer in the safe environment of school, adding: 'They are therefore likely to be out on the streets, and therefore potentially able to become involved in some of the criminal activity that Mr Findlay himself has put to me within the last fortnight at First Minister's Questions as being a risk to which young people are exposed.' Mr Findlay said there are different types of exclusion 'rather than just putting children on to the streets'. He criticised the new guidance for suggesting teachers have 'a conversation to jointly problem solve with the child' and proposing they produce laminated bullet points advocating alternative behaviours. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'We need a tougher approach, not laminated cards and inclusive chats,' Mr Findlay said. 'If pupils are violent or serially disruptive, exclude them.' Mr Swinney said the guidance seeks to address violence and deescalate situations in schools. He accused Mr Findlay of demonising young people and peddling 'simplistic nonsense'. Speaking to journalists after FMQs, Mr Swinney said: 'I think there are consequences of exclusions, so therefore those who call for there to be more exclusions have to also address the consequences. 'And the point I was making to Russell Findlay was the consequences of his call for more exclusions could be to contradict the call he made to me a fortnight ago, which was to avoid children becoming caught up in organised crime.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth previously said the new guidance had been developed with input from headteachers, unions and child psychologists.
STV News
12-06-2025
- Business
- STV News
Sarwar: 'Senior SNP figures say Swinney has two weeks to save his job'
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has claimed that John Swinney has just 'two weeks to come up with a new idea and save his job'. Swinney got into a back and forth argument with Sarwar at First Minister's Questions on Thursday over job losses at bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis, which has two Scottish sites in Falkirk and Larbert. The Labour leader said he was 'deeply concerned' by the announcement, which has put up to 400 Scottish jobs at risk, but he said the news was 'not inevitable'. 'Under the SNP, the Scottish Government is procuring more buses from China than they are from Scotland,' Sarwar said. The First Minister argued that the Scottish Government had provided the company with £58m through the zero emissions bus challenge fund and its predecessor. He added that Alexander Dennis had also benefited from £30.3m in research and development support from Scottish Enterprise. The debate ended with Sarwar accusing Swinney's own MSPs of 'openly rebelling against him'. 'Let them groan in public now, but senior [SNP] figures are saying [John Swinney] has two weeks to come up with a new idea to save his job,' Sarwar said. 'But if he hasn't come up with a good idea to improve Scotland in 18 years, what chance does he have now?' Sarwar's comments on the Chamber floor come after The Herald reported plots were emerging to challenge Swinney's leadership following the Hamilton by-election loss to Labour. It was reported that in the wake of the Labour victory, some 25 members of the SNP met to discuss the possibility of a leadership challenge unless Swinney brings forward a new strategy on independence. However, on Wednesday, finance secretary Shona Robison said: 'I have not heard that at all, so I don't know where that is coming from.' Asked if the First Minister's position was safe, she told BBC Radio Scotland's Good Morning Scotland programme: 'Yes, absolutely.' She added that 'the First Minister has absolutely stabilised the position within the party and government'. Likewise, the newly appointed Scottish housing secretary Mairi McAllan said she had 'absolute confidence' in Swinney's leadership as she went in to Bute House to accept her new position on Wednesday. Swinney did not respond to Sarwar's comments about his leadership at FMQs. Pivoting the debate back to job losses at Alexander Dennis, the First Minister said his Government will do 'everything we can' to support jobs at the bus manufacturers. He quoted a joint letter from the UK and Scottish governments, which pledged to 'work closely with Alexander Dennis at this challenging time'. He added: 'That's us indicating that we're keen to do everything we can to find a way through the Subsidy Control Act provisions, so the Government can continue to operate within the law, which we must do, but also, we can support manufacturing in Scotland, which is my priority.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
The Journal
11-06-2025
- Business
- The Journal
Taoiseach accused of making 'sacrificial lambs' of renters with new regulations
THE GOVERNMENT HAS been accused of making 'sacrificial lambs' of renters, as new regulations will extend Rent Pressure Zones, but landlords won't be subject to the 2% cap on rent increases for new tenancies. The reforms will also put a six-year-minimum on tenancies for the first time, to be rolled out from 1 March 2026, which will ban no-fault evictions for larger landlords. However, after the six years is up, landlords can reset the rent at market rate, avoiding the 2% cap on rent increases. Speaking during Leaders' Questions in the Dáil today, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald described the proposals as 'a shambles'. 'Your plan is to push up rents even further. It's only a question of when the renters will be hit. 'This isn't about protecting renters at all. This is about making renters carry the can for your failure in housing. 'You will allow record rents to be hiked up in the pitiful hope that big investors will save the day – the same casino behaviour that created this mess in the first place.' She said there was 'a very real danger' that the plan will 'tighten' rental supply in the coming months, as landlords could delay putting properties back on the market to charge a higher rent from March next year. Yesterday, McDonald and other opposition TDs said the reforms would 'jack up' rents either in the coming months or in six years' time, facilitated by government policy. 'This clearly meant people staying in an existing property, signing a new tenancy agreement, along with people moving into a property for the first time. And then, you were caught out,' she said. Advertisement 'So throughout the afternoon, you scrambled around denying that this was the case and then sometime in the evening, somebody slipped off and bizarrely changed the press release on the department website with a new wording, a wording that changes nothing.' Social Democrats housing spokesperson Cian O'Callaghan said the government has made 'sacrificial lambs' of renters and is 'gambling with their futures'. He also asked the Taoiseach whether they had 'ditched' the rent reset every six years based on comments given to the Dáil. 'You've told it all just a few minutes ago that new tenancies after March 2026 will be capped at CPI (Consumer Price Index), no mention of a reset every six years. No mention of that. Is the reset gone every six years? 'Do you accept now they are going to lead to huge rent increases for most renters, and these measures will increase hardship, poverty, evictions and homelessness for renters?' The Taoiseach responded: 'No, I don't.' 'The bottom line is, I repeat again, all existing tenants will not have their rents increase beyond 2% and no attempts by you to sow confusion will change that reality,' he said. A row ensued in the Dáil when Martin accused the Social Democrats of not believing there is 'a role for the market' in housing supply, to which Social Democrat TDs objected. Martin also accused the opposition of hyperbole. Here are the main points of the new rental regulations: Landlords will be allowed to hike rents in instances where tenants leave homes voluntarily, but not if they are evicted. No fault evictions have been banned for landlords who own four or more properties. Smaller landlords (up to three properties) can still evict tenants in certain circumstances, such as financial hardship or a desire for an immediate family member to move into the property. New tenancies created from 1 March 2026 onwards will be set at market value and offered a six-year minimum rolling tenancy. At the end of the six-year tenancy, the rent can be reset and 'put back to the market', meaning the first series of rent resets will take place in 2032. Large landlords, defined as having four or more tenancies, will be banned from carrying out no-fault evictions for tenancies beginning from 1 March 2026. It will remain prohibited to set a rent above the market rate. Landlords can still sell at any time if they use the tenant-in-situ scheme. With reporting by PA Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
RTÉ News
11-06-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
'On-the-spot' measures urged over anti-social behaviour
'On-the-spot' measures to help tackle anti-social behaviour by youths are needed, the Dáil has heard. Independent TD Paul Gogarty said there must be consequences for young people who carry out low-level crimes such as assaults. Speaking during Leaders' Questions, he suggested that restrictions on social media to avoid the "Andrew Tate-ification" of young adolescents, curfews, the seizing of scooters and playstations, or fining parents as potential measures that could be implemented. "A lot of our young people are under threat from random, violent assaults just by gangs going around, 12-year-olds, 13-year-olds. "I had parents come to me with a lad who got a punch and a damaged eye socket just from getting a punch. "It's abuse given to anyone. This is happening everyday, I'm not talking about the stuff that requires four mountain bike gardaí from operation Irene in an estate in my constituency where fires are lit regularly, drug dealing takes place and someone got attacked with a machete recently - that's high level stuff that needs to be dealt with, true enough. "But it's the low-level stuff that puts people in peril walking around and many times its young people who are randomly attacked." Mr Gogarty said there was an absence in addressing these lower-level crimes carried out by those under the age of 18. The Taoiseach said increased anti-social behaviour was a "real issue" and that the source and evolution consistently has to be dealt with. Micheál Martin said he believed schools deal with this well and are well ahead. He told the Chamber there were some consequences already such as anti-social behaviour orders, the rollout of bodycams to gardaí and the expansion of youth reach programmes. However, he said there is an absence of consequence for some low-level crimes, which is sometimes due to trying to give children a chance, and said he would raise the issue with the Minister for Justice.
Fast Company
11-06-2025
- Business
- Fast Company
How can I delegate more?
Welcome to Pressing Questions, Fast Company 's workplace advice column. Every week, deputy editor Kathleen Davis, host of The New Way We Work podcast, will answer your biggest and most pressing workplace questions. How can I delegate more? Warning: Clichés abound with my answer to this problem. You may feel that if you want something done right you have to do it yourself, or that passing your work off to someone else means that it won't be done to the same standard. Or you might feel threatened that if someone else does a good job at your work you will be seen as expendable. Or maybe you're worried that teaching someone how to do some of your work will be more time-consuming than just doing it yourself. But another cliché is true too: If you teach someone to fish, they eat for a lifetime. Delegating tasks may have more upfront time costs than doing it yourself, but once that person learns the skills and takes over the task, not only is it off of your to-do list forever, but they now have gained a valuable skill. If you delegate the right tasks, you can also help in your own career growth. Here's where another cliche comes in: Time is money. As Fast Company contributor Elizabeth Grace Saunders pointed out in a recent article, 'If your time is worth about $60 an hour and a task takes five hours, that's $300 of time. But if you're paying an entry-level employee $15 per hour, that same task ends up only costing $75. For you to do the task might not make sense.' But it's not just that creating a PowerPoint 'costs' you $300; it's what other things you can be doing with those five hours—or as Saunders puts it, the opportunity cost of spending your time in different ways. With those five hours freed up you could focus on the types of projects that are more likely to get you promoted, for example. Okay, so now that I've convinced you why you need to delegate, here's how to go about it: Write it down clearly The worst way to delegate is to just throw a bunch of information at someone and hope for the best. Your best first step when handing over a task is to make a written guide. The clearer and more step-by-step, the better. Include screenshots or record a video if relevant. Yes, it's more up-front work for you, but then if the person you are delegating the task to doesn't remember something you told them, they have a reference. And if that person ends up leaving, you have a guide to pass on to the next person. Walk them through the task and ask them to repeat it back to you Putting together a written guide is your first step. The next is walking them through the task. Share your screen if you're in a virtual meeting or sit next to them and complete the task together. Watching you build the presentation, for example, will help form the memory of how to do it. Make sure to stop for questions along the way. And, after you walk them through the task, it's a good idea to have them repeat back the most important points to make sure that information sticks. This might feel condescending at first blush but it's a common practice in lots of critical jobs. 'An air traffic controller gives a pilot instructions, and the pilot has to repeat it back to ensure they got it correctly,' says Dana Brownlee, author of The Unwritten Rules of Managing Up. 'You can use the same thing in the workplace.' To avoid appearing untrusting, you can say something like, 'I know I threw a lot at you, and this has a lot of moving parts. To ensure I didn't confuse you, would you mind repeating the information about the slides and the day they're due?' Check back in, then step back Finally, once you've given them the written guide and walked them through how to do it, check back in around the time it's due to make sure everything is going smoothly. You don't have to go full-on micromanager and look over their shoulder. Just a simple, 'Hey, wanted to see if everything is going okay with the PowerPoint and my instructions were clear.' This can be helpful if they hit a snag but were too embarrassed to speak up. Then, after they successfully complete the task, you can let them own it and reclaim you freed-up time!
