THE announcement that all school meal debt is to be wiped out by the Scottish Government will be “welcome news for families in Clacks” according to a Green MSP.
The Scottish Government announced that the figure, which sat at over £1 million for families across the country, will be written off as part of next year’s budget.
The Scottish Greens have been campaigning for several years to have this debt removed for struggling families.
Now, Mark Ruskell, Green MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, has hailed the move as a step in the right direction and praised the impact it will have on families.
He said: “This is really welcome news for families in Clacks and I am proud that we have delivered it with Scottish Greens in government.
“We know that young people struggle in school if they’re hungry or stressed by their family being chased for money for they cannot afford to pay.
“Not only has chasing this debt caused anxiety and embarrassment for students and their families, I know that school staff hate being put in the position of asking pupils for money they know that the family does not have.”
Towards the end of 2021, the Scottish Greens put forward a freedom of information request to reveal how much was owed per local authority. The request showed that families in the Wee County owed a total of £9,978.17 for school meals, a figure that will have since risen drastically.
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