Three codes broken in promoting SNP class size pledge, claim Lib Dems

Published on Saturday 5 December 2009 18:53

ALEX Salmond has been urged to make a statement to parliament amid allegations that three official codes of conduct were broken as a result of him telling Holyrood that the SNP would deliver its promise to lower class sizes to 18.

The pressure mounted on the First Minister when his opponents raised more questions about the government's handling of the schools crisis that led to Fiona Hyslop being sacked as education secretary.

At the end of a week in which Salmond was accused of breaking the ministerial code, Liberal Democrat leader Tavish Scott suggested the civil service code had also been broken, as well as the government's "guidance on collective decision-making".

Scott has written to the First Minister asking him to explain himself to parliament. The controversy erupted on Thursday when Salmond was criticised at First Minister's Questions for telling MSPs in 2007 that he could deliver his flagship manifesto promise within the current parliament when civil service advice issued two months before suggested otherwise.

A document was produced showing a senior civil servant had advised "ministers" it would take eight to ten years to deliver the pledge. It was claimed Salmond had breached a clause in the ministerial code stating ministers must give "accurate and truthful" information to parliament. Salmond's spokesman claimed Hyslop had not passed on the civil service advice to the First Minister. Scott's letter also suggests the civil service code might have been breached, if officials failed to advise ministers that "wrong information" had been given to parliament.

The Lib Dem leader further claimed that the collective decision-making guidance might have been broken because the advice was not passed on to the First Minister

Scott said: "The First Minister has some tough questions to answer. We need him to make a statement to the Scottish Parliament to get this mess sorted out. We need to know if the First Minister did know all along, or if his ministers were just too frightened to tell him that the SNP's flagship education promise couldn't be done."

The First Minister's spokesman has said ministers are not obliged to take civil service advice and can make their own decisions. He also emphasised that Salmond believed the pledge was deliverable when he addressed parliament in 2007, as he believed the concordat signed by the government and local authorities would enable it to be achieved.

Last night, a spokesman for the First Minister said Scott was pursuing a "spurious issue". He described his claims as nonsense.

He added: "Many councils have made progress on reducing class sizes. But far too many Liberal and Labour-led councils are not playing their part."