'PARLIAMENT has been sitting these last weeks but much of the attention has been on the General Election, and quite rightly, so as the outcome of that election will have a profound impact on both the Scottish Parliament and local government where council cuts have decimated many services.

In this election, there is a clear choice between the politics of austerity and the opportunity to re-balance our economy, so that it works in the interest of the many with a fairer distribution of power and wealth. Austerity was a choice made by the powerful following the world economic crash which was itself as a result of greed and fraud in a failed banking system.

The problem was that those who caused that crash and those who made lots of money out of it did not pay the price, we did. The Labour Party, in rejecting austerity, is putting forward a fully costed programme for government that will revitalise the economy allowing for a fairer distribution of the profits and crucially investing into public services.

We saw this week a report from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) that has shown again attainment levels in our schools have fallen in key areas including Maths and science. Tory austerity is the key factor in the level of cuts that have been made to our schools but so too is the failure of the SNP Government to priorities and their centralisation management policies towards education have proven to be a disaster.

Nicola Sturgeon once said that education was her priority and yet in this General Election she has tried very hard not to talk about education. Given her and the SNP's record, it is little wonder she has avoided talking about her record of failure.

Teachers are under pressure and suffering from workplace stress, teachers’ numbers are down by 3,000 since the SNP took power and in colleges, there has been a direct decision by the SNP of underinvestment, student numbers are down 120,000 and staff numbers have declined. Class sizes are far too high with many classes of over 30 and children are simply not being given the opportunity to achieve their potential. Education is the greatest gift you can give any child and I am afraid that in Scotland, education is not getting better; indeed, it is on a downward fall. That is why I want change, real change for the many'.