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The minimum age for leaving school in Scotland should be lowered from 16 to 14, according to plans being proposed by the Scottish Conservatives.

Party leader Russell Findlay said the “bold idea” would allow teenagers to escape a “system that isn’t working for them” and instead pursue a “hybrid education” by going on to college or taking up an apprenticeship.

The MSP for West Scotland will use a speech during Apprenticeship Week on Wednesday to propose the policy.

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay arrives for First Minister's Questions at the Scottish Parliament in Holyrood, Edinburgh. Picture date: Thursday January 23, 2025.
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Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay. Pic: PA

He said: “My party is putting forward a common sense agenda for change.

“This is not about writing off these young people. It is the very opposite of that.

“It is about guiding each individual onto the path best suited to their aspirations.

“It is about giving young people an opportunity to continue in a form of hybrid education that is better suited to their talents.

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“Upon leaving school at 15, maybe even 14, they would still be required to stay in education.

“But it would be a form of education that works for them. A fast track to opportunity, whether college or an apprenticeship.

“By developing our proposal hand in hand with businesses, we could make Scotland’s economy fit for the future.”

If implemented, the school leaving age of 14 would be one of the lowest in Europe.

In response, Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth described the proposal – which was previously championed by the Scottish Tories in 2011 – as “Dickensian”.

File photo dated 15/08/24 of Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth during a visit to Stonelaw High School in Rutherglen. The Scottish Government has announced Sabhal Mor Ostaig as the home of the country's new Gaelic teaching hub. The Skye college, the only one in the world which teaches exclusively in Gaelic, will be given �109,657 to upgrade its facilities. Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth announced the funding during a visit to Skye on Thursday. Issue date: Friday February 21, 2025.
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Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth. Pic: PA

‘Tory values rooted in the Victorian era’

She added: “The Tories should say what they mean – they want to see working class children leave school at 14 and leave academic pursuits to the middle and upper class. That is not an approach this government will agree with.

“We will continue to take action to ensure every child in Scotland no matter their background has the opportunity to succeed in whatever path they choose.

“The last time the school leaving age was changed to 14 was over a century ago.

“Tory values may be rooted in the Victorian era – but we will not allow them to drag our education system into a bygone age with this Dickensian policy.

“As ever, what is common sense to the Tories makes no sense to anyone else.”

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Calls to give ‘equal weight’ to apprenticeships

The Scottish Tories’ proposal comes amid a call by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) to set aside time in class for pupils to learn about apprenticeships to improve minority ethnic participation.

The skills body has made 20 recommendations to the Scottish government and employers in a report published to coincide with Apprenticeship Week.

According to the latest data, 4.5% of those starting apprenticeships in 2023/24 reported being from an ethnic minority, while the proportion in the population sits at 7.1%, according to the 2022 census results.

Recommendations to Holyrood include ensuring schools give “equal weighting” to apprenticeships as positive destinations, while recommendations to employers include implementing anti-racism frameworks, paying the Living Wage and signing up to Fair Work practices.

Recommendations to be ‘considered’

Schools are also being urged to ensure dedicated time is allocated in the curriculum for learning about apprenticeship opportunities, as well as provide support with the application process.

A Scottish government spokesperson said it “recognises the importance of improving ethnic minority representation in apprenticeships, which is why ministers welcome the report and the detailed recommendations made by the Race Commission”.

“We will now consider how these recommendations can be embedded in the skills system as we take forward our reform work,” they added.

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Child dies and another injured after car driven on to sports pitch

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Child dies and another injured after car driven on to sports pitch

A child has died and another has been injured after a car was driven on to a sports pitch in Cumbria.

Police say they were called at 4.58pm to reports of a collision involving a BMW i40 and two children on a pitch at Kendal Rugby Union Football Club on Shap Road, in Kendal.

Cumbria Police say one child died, while the second is being treated by paramedics.

A man aged in his 40s has been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.

A spokesperson for Cumbria Police said: “Specialist investigators are at the scene and the area has been cordoned off as initial investigation enquiries take place.”

The force said the incident was not believed to be terror-related. Immediate family members of both children have been informed, it added.

In a post on its Facebook page, the club said it was “deeply saddened to confirm that an incident occurred today at Kendal Rugby Club.”

The post, attributed to club chairman Dr Stephen Green, continued: “Our thoughts are with their family and friends and we kindly ask for privacy for all involved at this difficult time.”

The club and its facilities are now temporarily closed while it cooperates “fully” with authorities, it added.

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Tim Farron MP, whose constituency includes Kendal, posted on X: “This is devastating, utterly heartbreaking news. I’m praying for the children and for their families and friends.

“Our community in Kendal is stunned and in mourning.”

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PhD student guilty of drugging and raping 10 women in London and China

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PhD student guilty of drugging and raping 10 women in London and China

A man has been convicted of drugging and raping 10 women in London and China between 2019 and 2023.

Chinese PhD student Zhenhao Zou, 28, filmed nine of the attacks as “souvenirs”, and kept a trophy box of women’s belongings, jurors in his trial were told.

Warning: This article contains details of sexual offences

He was accused in court of drugging and raping three women in London and seven in China between 2019 and 2023.

Jurors at Inner London Crown Court found him guilty of 11 charges of rape against 10 women, including two who have been identified and another eight who have yet to be traced.

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Moment police arrest student guilty of rape

The mechanical engineering student was also convicted of three counts of voyeurism, 10 of possession of an extreme pornographic image, one of false imprisonment and three of possession of a controlled drug with intent to commit a sexual offence, namely butanediol.

He was cleared of two further counts of possession of an extreme pornographic image and one of possession of MDMA with intent to commit a sexual offence.

***ONLY USE IF HE IS CONVICTED OF AT LEAST TWO RAPES*** The trial heard Zou kept a 'lost property box' full of women's belongings. Pic: Met Police
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The trial heard Zou kept a ‘lost property box’ full of women’s belongings. Pic: Met Police

The jury has not reached verdicts on four counts of possession of drugs with intent to commit a sexual offence.

Zou – who first moved to Belfast in 2017 to study mechanical engineering at Queen’s University before moving to London in 2019 – showed no visible reaction as the verdicts were read out in court.

Catherine Farrelly KC, prosecuting, told jurors during the trial that Zou “presents as a smart and charming young man” but is “also a persistent sexual predator; a voyeur and a rapist”.

***ONLY USE IF HE IS CONVICTED OF AT LEAST TWO RAPES*** A discreet camera belonging to Zou. Pic: Met Police
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A discreet camera belonging to Zou. Pic: Met Police

Zou, who also used the name Pakho online, befriended fellow Chinese students on WeChat and dating apps, before inviting them for drinks and drugging them at his flats in London or an unknown location in China, the court heard.

The jury heard how he would secretly film his attacks using a mobile device and hidden cameras, and was shown evidence found on SD cards at his accommodation of him raping unconscious women in London and in China.

Senior Crown Prosecution Service prosecutor Saira Pike thanked the “incredibly strong and brave” women who came forward to report his “heinous” crimes.

“Zou is a serial rapist and a danger to women,” she said.

“In some instances, we have not been able to identify Zou’s victims. Without knowing who these women are, we have not been able to support them through a deeply distressing period of time.

“We have always been determined to seek justice for both the unidentified and identified victims in this case.”

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James Scott Rhys Anderson: British man who ‘fought for Ukraine’ jailed for 19 years in Russia

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James Scott Rhys Anderson: British man who 'fought for Ukraine' jailed for 19 years in Russia

A British man has been jailed for 19 years after a Russian court found him guilty of fighting for Ukraine in the country’s Kursk region.

James Scott Rhys Anderson, 22, had been charged with terrorist and mercenary offences and was found guilty after a closed trial.

The court said he was to serve the first five years of his sentence in prison and the remainder in a penal colony.

In the trial, a Ukrainian soldier from the same unit was questioned as a witness.

Ukrainian troops broke across the border into Kursk region on 6 August last year.

They still hold some territory there seven months later, despite attempts by Russian forces to force them out.

Investigators accused Anderson of illegally crossing into Kursk in November as part of an armed group that committed unspecified “criminal acts against civilians”.

Russian state media published video showing him being led in handcuffs and locked in a cage of the kind where defendants in Russian court cases are placed.

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It apparently showed Anderson saying he had served in the British army from 2019-2023 before deciding to join the foreign legion of Ukraine’s armed forces.

Early on in the war, Ukraine’s authorities said more than 20,000 people from 52 countries came to Ukraine’s aid.

Since then, the number of foreign fighters in Ukraine’s military has been classified.

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