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I think that some of the appointments are time limited. I will bring in Clare on those points.

I might defer to Clare Hicks, but my understanding is that there would be a substantial delay to the appointment process if that were to happen. I am happy to bring my officials in on that.

Nico, do you want to come in on the first point?

You are speaking hypothetically, Mr Greer, but I share your anxiety in that regard. We would not be able to give board members certainty about their role during the transitional period in which the SQA finds itself in as the bill makes its way through the Parliament.

That sits with the line of questioning that Ms Duncan-Glancy pursued earlier. The Government will have to reflect and respond appropriately to the amendments on the recruitment process. If the committee chooses not to pass the order, which is in the committee’s gift, it will simply delay that process and risk some of the appointments becoming unregulated, which speaks to Mr Greer’s point.

On accreditation specifically, I remind the member that only 20 staff are employed in the SQA accreditation team, so if there is a suggestion about different board composition for accreditation, we need to be mindful of the number of staff in the part of the organisation that we are talking about. The Government will have to reflect on the amendments that are agreed to at stages 2 and 3. I have given the committee a reassurance today that I will do that. I have to do that, but I also want to do that as cabinet secretary, because it will provide for a stronger piece of legislation that will have more political goodwill around it, and it will deliver the outcomes that we want to see for our young people.

I am at a loss as to how the committee can support the general principles of the bill at stage 1 and then not seek to work with the Government on amendments. In fact, I think that I have met most of the members who are at the table today and there is a political willingness from most parties to work with the Government on improving the bill to get it to where it needs to be, and I accept that.

Fundamentally, however, if the member’s line of questioning was accurate, I would have expected the committee to reject what the Government was proposing out of hand at stage 1. I think that there is a consensus in the room that we need to replace the SQA. I think there is also an expectation from the public that we deliver on that—but how we do that is in the gift of the Parliament. The order before you is a matter for the committee.

I will bring in Clare Hicks to talk about the Ethical Standards Commissioner’s role in the process. Important decisions need to be taken about how we advertise and how the process is conducted. There are risks inherent in our not adhering to the ethical appointments process.

I would also like to write to you to give you more certainty in relation to timescales, public advertising of the recruitment process and how that will be aligned with the timescales that are associated with stages 2 and 3 of the Education (Scotland) Bill. I want to do that to reassure the committee that the Government will listen—we will have to listen—to any decisions that might affect the order.

I have made similar comments—as a former teacher—and I have reflected on the need for us to have teachers inherently at the heart of decision making in the new qualifications body.

I also have a point to make that does not relate to the board appointments that we are considering today. I think that the role of a seconded headteacher in coming directly from a school to lead the schools unit in the new qualifications body will be a real strength from the point of view of Scotland’s schools and our teachers.

Thank you for the invitation to discuss the Scottish attainment challenge this morning.

The committee’s 2022 inquiry into the Scottish attainment challenge and its subsequent report have informed much of our on-going work. My predecessor as Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills provided an update on progress back in 2022, as did I when I attended the committee to discuss the issue in 2023. I will take this opportunity to update committee members and to flag my priorities for the future.

The mission of the attainment challenge is to use education to improve outcomes for children and young people who are impacted by poverty, with a focus on closing the poverty-related attainment gap. I am pleased that we are making progress. For example, last month, we saw in the data on initial leaver destinations for 2023-24 that the poverty-related attainment gap has been reduced by two thirds, or 67 per cent, since 2009-10. We have also recorded record low poverty-related attainment gaps in literacy in our primary schools and in both literacy and numeracy in our secondary schools. I am grateful to school staff for their excellent work in targeting support towards pupils who need it most.

We all want to increase the pace of progress across all ages and stages. The Government’s commitment to the Scottish attainment challenge has been unwavering, as has been demonstrated by our investment of up to £1 billion during this parliamentary session alone. The significance of that investment is not lost on me. That is why we have a comprehensive multiyear evaluation strategy in place, which the committee’s 2022 report looked at. Education Scotland gathers and shares a vast range of data and local information. Over the past year, Government officials and attainment advisers have visited 129 schools to sample pupil equity funding plans in order to see the impact of the programme.

We cannot ignore the lasting impact of the pandemic and the subsequent cost of living crisis. Within that context, it has been heartening to see schools using their pupil equity fund money and working so creatively to help to support their pupils and families. In schools such as Fair Isle primary school in Fife and Braes high school in Falkirk, PEF has been used to reduce the cost of the school day and to help families access the benefits that they are entitled to and to develop their literacy and numeracy skills, thereby reducing the invidious challenges that are associated with poverty.

However, I cannot ignore the impact of austerity on families who are experiencing poverty. It has increased the number of families living in poverty and presents barriers to young people’s educational experiences and attainment before they even arrive at the school gates. The Government recognises the pressures on household budgets. That is why, in 2025-26, we will continue to allocate more than £3 billion of funding to policies that will help to tackle poverty and the cost of living. However, it disappoints me that schools are having to fight that battle. Our headteachers are having to make choices about funding things like income-maximisation officers, as opposed to direct educational interventions.

Today, I wish to give some comfort to Scotland’s headteachers on the continuation of the Scottish attainment challenge. As I have stated in evidence to the committee previously, I am clear that the Scottish attainment challenge should continue. To that end, the funding will continue through 2026-27. I hope that that confirmation is helpful to local authorities and schools alike, who I know deeply value the central Government’s support for the sector. I welcome the opportunity to discuss that important work with the committee.