§ Mr. Sproatasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the shortage of teachers at the latest available date in local authority secondary schools in Aberdeen and in Scotland.
§ Mr. Gordon CampbellThere is no shortage in Aberdeen. In Scotland as a whole, on the basis of the pupil/teacher ratio of 14.5 used for the forecast in Education in Scotland 1969, the current shortage is probably about 1,000, that is, about 300 less than the 1,300 forecast for this session. As indicated however in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Perth and East Perthshire (Mr. MacArthur) on 3rd February, my Department is engaged on studies designed to produce a more reliable measure of staffing needs.—[Vol. 810, c.369–70.]