Headline NewsLabour accused of ‘point scoring’ on triple tragedySNP furious over child deaths slur Exclusive Labour MSP Duncan McNeil has claimed the children may have been left vulnerable because of inaction by the Scottish Government over home-schooling laws. But the Scottish Government has reacted angrily, accusing him of trying to make political capital out of a tragic case. A spokesman for the Scottish Government condemned the intervention as “inappropriate and unacceptable”. Custody battle All three Riggi children — twins Luke and Austin, eight, and their five-year-old sister Cecilia — were being home-schooled, and this is believed to have been a bone of contention in the custody battle between their parents. Their mother Theresa Riggi (46) has been charged with their murders. The children’s father Pasquale Riggi said late last week, “We are struggling to come to terms with the immense and tragic loss of three beautiful children.” Mr McNeil, the MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, said the tragedy was complex — but he pointed the finger of blame at the fact the children were being taught at home. “Any inquiry should try to determine whether the home-schooling of the Riggi children led to any delays in the authorities picking up on the danger they were in. “Whether it was a factor in this case or not, parents who educate their children in this way have to be accountable. Work has been carried out in England as part of the Badman review to tighten up home-schooling laws, and if there is a perception that the Scottish system is weaker than the English one then we must act. “Disappointed” “So I was disappointed by the complacent response from Schools Minister Keith Brown, when I raised concerns about home-schooling six months ago, and I would hope he would look again to see if we can make our system more robust.” In England, following the Badman review, steps are being taken to tighten the law in respect to home-schooling. In Scotland, Mr McNeil says, nothing has been done, so much so, that English parents are moving to Scotland so they can home-school their children. There are around 5500 home-schooled children in Scotland. Parents do not have to be qualified as a teacher to home-school a child, and can employ anyone they want to teach. The number of hours of home-schooling a child should have is not set down in law, there is no guidance on what is taught, and no monitoring of progress. Regulation In England, Graham Badman conducted a review last year into home education and made recommendations about tighter regulation, now before parliament. The review recommended that home educated children must register annually with their local authorities and that home-schooling arrangements should be subject to inspection. Mr McNeil claims the Scottish Government has given no indication it will look to impose similar legislation. The Badman review also found home-schooled children in England were twice as likely to be known by social services, and four times more likely as young adults to be out of work, education or training. A spokesperson for Education Secretary Michael Russell slammed Mr McNeil’s intervention. He said everyone in Scotland was shocked at the deaths of three innocent children. “Our police and justice system will do the thorough and professional job required in these horrific circumstances. “At such an early stage of this very distressing case, Mr McNeil’s remarks seeking to make wider points about home-schooling are inappropriate and unacceptable.” A Scottish Government spokesperson added, “Irrespective of where a child is educated, councils have to protect their welfare.” |
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A FURIOUS political row has broken out over the deaths of the three Riggi children in Edinburgh last week.
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