Stevenson Highlights Importance of Language Skills in the North East

Stewart Stevenson, SNP MSP for Banffshire & Buchan Coast, has emphasised the importance of language skills and how they can create a higher profile for the North East.

In a Portfolio Question today (Wednesday), Mr Stevenson asked what action was being taken in the North East to help develop language skills that will bring more international business to the area.

In his response, Dr Alasdair Allan, Minister for Learning, Science and Scotland’s Languages, said:

“Our commitment to stronger languages provision in schools is fundamentally linked to our ambitions for business growth throughout Scotland.

“We are already starting to see exciting changes in what schools are offering and in what young people expect to be able to learn, to equip them for life and work. Since 2010 there has been an eight per cent increase in Higher language entries.”

He added:

“There is a clear potential impact on inward investment - at a recent Aberdeen Business Breakfast event, Total UK and Barclays Bank were amongst employers emphasising the value of language skills in their workforces to young people from local high schools.”