Chamber and committees

No problem at all. I will break it down. One bit was about your priorities—the things that you are looking at—and how they fit with the Scottish Government’s priorities, and whether you think that that is a good fit or that the Scottish Government could do things differently.

Regarding your committee motion, yes.

It is fine. Take your time.

Did you say that the plans on ESOL have not been refreshed since 2020? I could not hear.

Brilliant. Thanks so much. Ramiza, are you all right there?

Thanks very much.

I will come back to that point—I had international comparators.

I will stick with education. Rob, you mentioned the word “survive”. I am passionate about education, and everyone should thrive through education. However, we know about the impact of poverty. Resources can be put into front-line education—a child has a place, a classroom, a teacher in front of them, their books and so on. However, we know that children might be living in unsafe housing, in precarious personal circumstances and all of that—I am alluding to the poverty-related attainment gap. What is your opinion of the minimum core in education? Should resources be targeted at housing and health? We know that these things are all interconnected and I am not expecting a black-and-white answer, but it would be good to hear your opinion.

Is the example of free school meals a good one? A child could be sitting in a classroom with the best teacher in the world and everything in front of them, but if they are hungry, have not had their breakfast and are not going to eat, their priority will be their hunger. That will prevent them from thriving in education and learning, so the investment and the money need to go into feeding and housing children, for instance, or maternal healthcare. It is a complex picture. With the right to education, the sand goes into all sorts of different areas.

I do not mind if Zainab wants to come in.

That is a fair point, but that is not what I meant. I was just using it as an illustrative example. I would like families to have access to good, nutritious food.

I realise that time might be a little tight, deputy convener, but if I can just—