Following the changes made by the Labour Government which imposed VAT on private school fees, Edinburgh West MP Christine Jardine has hit out at the damaging impact of the decision, as new figures revealed a sharp drop in pupil numbers across Scotland’s independent schools.
Ms Jardine says the latest census from the Scottish Council of Independent Schools (SCIS) shows that enrolments have fallen by almost 3,000 pupils, a 10% decline, since the tax was introduced, with the steepest drop seen in Edinburgh, where rolls have fallen by over 10%.
She said: “Here in Edinburgh, schools are already under enormous pressure, and this so-called “education tax” is making things worse.
“By driving hundreds of local pupils out of independent schools and into an already overstretched state sector, Labour has made class sizes bigger and resources tighter for everyone.
“This is a short-sighted and damaging policy. It is time the Government admitted it got this wrong and reversed a tax that is costing taxpayers money and harming education in Edinburgh and across Scotland.”
Christine Jardine MP PHOTO © House of Commons
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
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