§ Mr. David Steelasked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he will consider amending the Scottish Education Department bursary regulations to end financial discrimination against the under-18s.
§ Mr. Gordon CampbellNo. I consider that the rates of bursaries paid to students who are under 18 should remain lower than the rates for students over 18 in accordance with the recommendation made by working parties which were appointed to review the Education Authority Bursaries (Scotland) Regulations in 1969 and 1972. It is important that pupils should be encouraged to remain at school to complete their secondary education. The existing differentiation has this effect and I see no reason to devote additional resources to removing it.