Education lobby of Scottish Parliament

UCU members will highlight the problems a proposed funding cut for teacher education from £30 to £22 million and a reduction in the number of new teachers entering the profession will cause. The union says it understands the challenges of ensuring the right number of teachers, but believes the level of the cut will leave Scottish schools with a shortage of teachers when numbers will need to increase again in future years.

UCU Scotland official, Mary Senior, said: "UCU's Defend jobs, defend education campaign will be heading to Holyrood to demand the Scottish government commits itself to education in these difficult times. We do not believe that drastic cuts to the teacher education budget is in anyone's interests in either the short or long-term."

The lobby will be followed by rally at Moray House School of Education

Chaired by Gordon Watson Vice-President UCU Scotland

Speakers will include:

• Mary Senior (UCU Scottish Official)
• Terry Wrigley, Edinburgh UCU,
• Penny Gower Educational Institute of Scotland council and Further Education Lecturers' Association executive