The closure of the ExxonMobil plant at Mossmorran has been a blow to the workers and community there. I have been encouraged to see the constructive work between Fife Council and the UK and Scottish governments, but that needs to be built on to secure future opportunities at the site.

The Scottish Parliament's education committee heard evidence from the Scottish Council for Independent Schools on the effect of the UK Government's decision to introduce VAT on their fees. I asked about the effect on the continuity of education for children from families with modest incomes.

I was glad to join Ed Davey and other Liberal Democrat parliamentarians last week for a day of discussions with businesses from across Scotland, covering energy, housing, skills, food and drink, fish and more.

It was great to visit St Andrews Aquarium at the weekend with Wendy Chamberlain and Daisy Cooper. We heard about their work with volunteers, community projects and their plans for the future.

I have heard the concerns of self-catering businesses about the business rates revaluation. My Scottish Liberal Democrat colleagues and I have engaged with the Scottish Government through the budget process and have secured a new... 1/3

The Scottish Liberal Democrats have secured £300 million for our priorities in the Scottish Government budget. That means more money for business rates relief, colleges, social care, hospices, autism and ADHD assessments and support, and backing for young entrepreneurs. 1/2

The best part of two decades on from the SNP promise to replace the council tax, they have barely moved an inch forward. Ministers have come and gone, claiming that they wanted to listen to other parties' proposals, without ever proposing a serious way forward.

I have called for the current revaluation of business rates to be paused, in order to address the concerns of hospitality and self-catering businesses. Many fear that they simply won't be able to continue operating if the increases in their rates go ahead.

It was right to replace the SQA but we need to make sure that the new body, Qualifications Scotland, works constructively with the rest of the education sector. I asked the education secretary how she will ensure that happens.

I visited the new Tiny Gym pod in St Andrews with the company's founder Mike to see his concept in action. Tiny Gyms provide self-service private exercise spaces for people who feel intimidated by traditional public gyms. 1/2

I set out my support for Daniel Johnson's bill on restraint and seclusion in schools. It is an important step to bring guidance onto a statutory footing and to give it the priority that it deserves. 1/2

Congratulations to Seescape on being shortlisted in the Smiley Charity Film Award for their film 'Visions of Hope: 160 Years' which celebrates the charity's history of supporting people in Fife, from its origins in 1865 to helping over 3,500 people today. smileycharityfilmawards.com/films/vision...

I visited Change Mental Health in Methil to talk to the charity's support workers about the excellent work they do. The demand for their services is huge, so I want the government to learn from their experience to tackle the mental health crisis.

I argued for exemptions to the Housing Bill in order to support investment in mid-market and build-to-rent properties, to increase the supply of housing and tackle the housing emergency. This week I asked the housing secretary to rule out time limits on these exemptions which could deter investment.

Thousands of teachers are stuck on precarious contracts because the government has completely mismanaged its workforce plan, training extra teachers without being able to employ them. The latest figures showed less than a quarter of newly-qualified teachers were able to find a permanent contract.

The government's reform to skills bodies - the Scottish Funding Council and Skills Development Scotland - was not the reform I would have pursued. As I made clear in my speech on the final stage of the legislation, other vital elements of reform including career advice and... 1/2

The government has acknowledged the funding gap between council-run nurseries and private nurseries delivering the same 1140 funded hours. This has undermined private nurseries' ability to hire and retain skilled staff and has led to closures. 1/2

In November 37% of patients in A&E departments in Scotland waited more than four hours for a care decision. The number of patients waiting longer than the four-hour target has quadrupled in major A&E departments since 2018. 1/2

Working in partnership with farmers is the key to achieving many of our targets on climate change and biodiversity. We need a thriving farm sector in order to meet these challenges.

Colleges are vital to meeting the economy's need for skills and to helping people out of poverty. Greater funding for colleges was one of the Scottish Liberal Democrat priorities for the budget. 1/2

SRUC has received just a fraction of the capital funding which some other colleges did last year. This has posed a serious challenge to its ability to maintain its estate. I raised the issue with the further education minister.

I visited Crail to see the Crail Golfing Society's costal restoration work. This has involved the coast path being temporarily re-routed, but will result in the repair and upgrade of the existing coastal defences.

There was a welcome set of measures in the education secretary's statement on additional support needs this afternoon and I am pleased that the government has taken forward the suggestion I made for a national event to share best practice. 1/2

The SNP doesn't like to be reminded that they broke their promise to dual the A9 by 2025 and have pushed it back by a decade to 2035. They still have a long way to go to convince those who depend on the road that the work will be completed as quickly as possible.

SRUC's decision to close the animal care unit at Elmwood has caused real damage, especially to young people who relied on the course as a lifeline. I asked SRUC's Principal to reflect on that and whether it was the right decision.

I questioned the Principal of SRUC at the education committee today about the lack of investment at Elmwood compared to other sites, the balance of further and higher education in SRUC, the focus on the veterinary school and other issues. 1/2

The Scottish Government's draft budget included transitional relief for businesses which have been adversely affected by the rates revaluation. However I'm particularly concerned about the impact on self-catering properties and we will be asking for additional support from the finance secretary.

The Scottish Government published its draft budget today which included a number of Liberal Democrat priorities such as investment in social care, colleges, councils and hospices. We’ve also secured new funding for neurodevelopmental assessments and care. 1/2

In the statement this afternoon on the Scottish Government's draft budget, I raised the need to invest in special school buildings in Fife. The staff in these schools do excellent work but it is not right that their buildings are not up to scratch.

I was glad to visit the community fridge in Wormit last week. It's a great initiative which reduces food waste and provides support to people in the local community.

The Scottish Government has acted much to slowly to address dangerous cladding on buildings and I have consistently called for work to be accelerated. However the government's proposals for a new tax to fund the work is flawed and I set out why we couldn't support it at this stage.

In a debate on flooding I again called for a proper river catchment to manage the Eden. There needs to be clear advice for farmers and land owners as well as an adequate support scheme. 1/2

I have written to the finance secretary to ask for a pause to the current business rates revaluation to protect businesses from unmanageable increases in their bills. 1/3

The SNP promised in its 2021 manifesto to reduce teacher's class contact time, but they have failed to do so. That is the root of the dispute with education unions which could lead to strikes in schools, but the education secretary seemed more focussed on blaming others.

Many businesses have been confronted with steep increases in their business rates bills for the coming financial year, putting them at risk. 1/2

The education and children committee has been concerned about the rights of children from England who are placed in secure accommodation in Scotland. I asked the children minister whether she had discussed the issue with her counterpart in the UK Government.

I support short-term let control areas for the East Neuk and St Andrews, and I am encouraging Fife councillors to support this step when they consider the issue tomorrow. We need a balance between a thriving tourism industry and the housing needs of local people. 1/2

The SQA was criticised for being slow to engage with teachers and to update qualifications. Now that it has been replaced with a new body, Qualifications Scotland, I asked the education secretary what assurances she has received that it will take a different approach.

I secured a review of accreditation and quality assurance of qualifications as part of the Education Reform Act. This was important to ensure that there is adequate independent scrutiny of how qualifications are managed. I asked the education secretary for an update on this work.

I met local ambulance staff in North East Fife today to discuss the challenges facing the service. We talked about waiting times as well as drug misuse, mental health, and the first responder services in the East Neuk and Howe of Fife.

The SNP government has failed to close the poverty-related attainment gap as Nicola Sturgeon promised in 2016. Ministers insisted that their pandemic recovery plan would be sufficient to support pupils to regain their lost learning, but now they use covid as a defence for breaking the promise.

The risk of strikes in Scotland's schools remains after teachers' unions said that the education secretary's latest proposals do not adequately address their dispute on reducing teacher class contact time. I questioned the education secretary on what she is going to do to resolve the dispute.

In many health boards covering almost a third of Scotland's adult population, the NHS does not offer adult neurodevelopmental assessments. That makes it difficult for people to get the support they need. I asked the government to act more urgently to solve the problem.

The education secretary gave a statement today on the government's approach to tackling child sexual abuse and exploitation. I urged caution on the issue of mandatory reporting and asked her to listen closely to expert opinion.

The education committee questioned the justice secretary about comments she made which misrepresented the views of Professor Alexis Jay, who subsequently asked for her position to be clarified. 1/2

The education and children committee heard evidence from Professor Alexis Jay who has been appointed as the independent chair of a national strategic group on child sexual abuse and exploitation.

MSPs passed the Residential Outdoor Education Bill yesterday to ensure that all children are offered an outdoor residential trip. This reflects the importance and benefits this can provide.

➡️BUSINESS RATES SURVEY I am keen to understand the effect of the ongoing non-domestic rates revaluation on businesses in Scotland. Please take the time to complete this short survey. SURVEY: forms.gle/B3PbvLB3gRSo...

Cllr Gary Holt and I met with Stagecoach yesterday to convey the real anger of people across North East Fife at the recent changes they have made to their services. We also discussed possibilities for the way forward, including municipal bus services, franchising and quality bus partnerships.

It was great to visit the Bowhouse market with Wendy Chamberlain at the weekend. We talked to some of the local businesses who were selling their products there and did some Christmas shopping.