A TEACHING union has warned a Tory MSP about the dangers of returning to the classroom after he claimed the date schools will fully reopen should change by more than a month.

Jamie Greene spoke about how Scottish Conservatives want schools to reopen on March 15 instead of April 9 on GMS.

But he revealed he has not spoken to unions or teachers about the issue.

The EIS said returning to the classroom must be "achieved safely".

Greene, the Scottish Tories' education spokesperson, said: "I think any parents listening to this will be pretty much at the end of their tether. We had the bizarre spectacle the other day of the First Minister telling us that schools would reopen on the 9th of April which anyone worth their salt knows that's the first day of the Easter holidays.

"What we're doing is comparing the health situation right now to that of last year when there were school closures and we believe we are in a much better position.

"It's not just facts and figueres though, as the First Minister herself reminds us, we have made much progress with the vaccination. We are in a very different place from last year's school closures."

GMS host Laura Maxwell pointed out the Brazilian variant spreads more rapidly and has been found in the North East of Scotland.

But Greene said: "There's more information to come out of that. There have been many variants of coronavirus but we have managed, as a country, to keep them under control. What we're doing is using evidence-based facts to look at the situation.

"I mean the reality is we want to get these young people back into school safely and quickly. I really don't see the justification for keeping young people in Scotland out of the classroom among longer than other parts of the UK where there are plans in place – and ambitious ones at that – to get them back into the classroom.

"All we're talking about here is a matter of a couple of weeks, and that doesn't sound like much, but what we're talking about here is two weeks of face-to-face teaching and that will make all the difference – especially as we come into the exams period where teachers have to estimate awards."

READ MORE: Everything we know about 'worrying' Brazilian variant as cases found in Scotland

When asked if it would be safer to wait and see what the Covid cases are like now some pupils have gone back, Greene said: "The figures are published daily and the trends are positive. What I'd like to hear from the First Minister this week is an ambitious plan to get young people back into the classroom.

"There's no point telling people they are going back on April the 9th when what she really means is a couple of weeks later because the schools are closed. Instead of pulling the wool over parents' eyes, be honest with them and say we have a plan to get them back into the classroom, we as a government will do everything we have to ... to get them back into the classroom. It's the classroom where they belong.

He continued: "Whatever that takes, whether it's enhanced safety measures in schools, or indeed a regular testing regime for staff and pupils – these are all things we asked the government to deliver many months ago and I am saying it's getting to that point now where we need as much face-to-face teaching as we can muster and that requires an ambitious plan from the government."

Maxwell asked if Greene had spoken to teachers or unions about the issue.

He responded: "I think most teachers want to teach in the class too but they are absolutely right to want classrooms to be safe places and because of that we have been calling for a robust asymptomatic testing regime to be put in place. I do appreciate that has started in the past few weeks ... teachers do have to feel safe, all school staff have to feel safe, and parents have to trust they are sending their children to safe places. But I also believe our young people have lost nearly an entire term of school and what started as just a couple of weeks ..."

An EIS spokesperson told The National: “The EIS regularly surveys its members on school safety, and publishes this information to highlight teachers’ views. Clearly, teachers do want to be in classrooms working with children, but they also want this to be achieved safely.

"We continue to believe that, if opening schools is a priority than protecting school staff, pupils and their families must also be a priority.

"The current EIS Protect Education campaign – calling for school staff to be vaccinated, for proper ventilation in schools, and for medical-grade face coverings to be provided for staff – is highlighting key concerns that teachers have over school safety.” 

Maxwell told Greene that children are still learning but in a different way.

"They are still learning but we know that attainment figures are widening," Greene went on. "We know those in our most deprived communities are suffering the worst and we know the online learning experience, whilst it's great in some places, is not universally perfect, it's back in the classroom where children belong. And of course we must make it safe and the government has a duty to do that."

A Scottish Conservative spokesman told The National: “We are in regular discussions with teachers who help to inform our education policy.”