In the debate, “Ending Violence in Schools”, she spoke of the problems being encountered in one local school, after one of her constituents, a teacher, told “horror stories” of their plight.

She claimed that “standards have slipped” over the past 16 years, with literacy, reading, writing, listening, talking and numeracy in decline in primary schools.

She said: “Teachers are under more strain and pressure than ever before because of the system that the SNP Government has created. They are suffering from more abuse and violence than ever before because of SNP Government reforms.”

The MSP then talked of one whistleblower teacher who had come to her with her worries over a small number of children who have been handed a “free run to ruin the learning environment”.