Complaint
A viewer questioned a report on RAAC concrete in public buildings arguing it failed to reflect what the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice Shirley-Anne Somerville had said in a statement about the issue to the Scottish Parliament. Β The ECU assessed whether the output met the standards of due accuracy set out in the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Editorial Guidelines.
Outcome
Ms Somerville’s statement referred to a change of approach by the Westminster government which advised that any space or area with confirmed RAAC should no longer be open without mitigations in place. Β She criticised the lack of communication from the UK government claiming it showed a disregard for the work of the devolved governments. In a short, live news item a Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ reporter summarised her comments as follows:
The Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville hit out at the English Education Secretary for closing schools down south - she said she was causing chaos and unnecessary alarm. But Gillian Keegan for her part was saying that the safety of pupils and staff would always be her top priority.
The complainant argued this was misleading as her comments did not amount to direct criticism of the decision to close schools in England. The ECU acknowledged greater detail might have been helpful but in the limited time available did not consider viewers would have been materially misled as her criticism of the UK Government was clear. ΜύΜύ
Not Upheld