asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has taken note of the criticisms made of the Scottish Higher Leaving Examination by the Scottish Advisory Council on Education; and if he will take steps now to abolish this barrier to educational progress and substitute the recommended alternative of a fourth year Leaving Certificate based on teachers' estimates and corrected by a standardised test.

The recommendations made by the Advisory Council on Education in Scotland in their report on secondary education, including those which relate to the Senior Leaving Certificate Examination, are still under consideration. As they involve very important issues, some of which necessitate consultation between the Scottish Education Department and other examining bodies, it will be some time before I am in a position to make a statement on the subject.

Is the Secretary of State aware that I have known quite brilliant students with a very good record who have been affected so much by this particular form of examination because of their, nervous temperament, that they came out very badly in the examination?

I am aware that these things can happen in connection with examinations.