Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what assessment he has made of the impact of the Scottish Government's real terms reduction in College Funding since 2021 to the delivery of the industrial strategy in Scotland.

Colleges have a critical role in ensuring the young people of Scotland can access secure, skilled jobs, and in fostering innovation, developing a skilled workforce, and driving economic growth.

This is why we have committed to hundreds of millions of additional funding for colleges in the Industrial Strategy.

However, the funding of colleges in Scotland is a matter for the Scottish Government. Scotland’s colleges have had their funding cut by 20% between 2021/22 and 2025/26. The Spending Review was historic for Scotland and delivered the largest real terms settlement for the Scottish Government since devolution, with an average £50.9 billion per year between 2026-27 and 2028-29. Last week’s Budget has boosted this by a further £820m.

As the UK Government has delivered a record funding settlement to the Scottish Government, it is up to them to ensure that young people will benefit from these investments.