MSP calls for more school links with the Far East

Lothians SNP MSP Ian McKee has called on the Scottish Government to boost school links with the Far East.

Dr McKee said he learned during a visit to Taiwan that West Lothian was the only Scottish council involved in the British Council's "Connecting Classrooms" scheme to foster such links.

He said: "All the indications are the economic future is going to be in Asia and I would have thought it would be helpful to have our children starting to form a relationship with Asian schoolchildren. Education Secretary Michael Russell said the government already encouraged links.

He referred to the West Lothian link, led by Deans Community High School in Livingston.

And he added: "Three schools in Edinburgh and East Lothian have recently built links with schools on the Thai-Burma border.

"Two of these schools have already visited Scotland with representatives of the third school due to visit in March."