Scottish First Minister Jack McConnell says continuous, high quality learning and education must be Scotland's strategy for the future.

I am delighted to be here today. The Fabians have always been at the forefront of renewal and policy development throughout the Labour Party's history. In his 1907 Encyclopaedia, the Reverend James Wood described 'The Fabian Society', as 'middle-class socialist propaganda.'

We are told that 'the Society issues "Essays" and "Tracts"; it watches and seizes its opportunities to achieve Socialist results.'

Socialism through essay-writing – easily mocked but with a record of success. Fabian essays called for the establishment of the NHS, the introduction of a minimum wage, and the abolition of hereditary peers. All many decades ahead of time.

Over the years, I and others have joined the Society to take part in discussions like those that will take place here today, and to follow the new thinking that is reflected in the journals and publications you promote. Our values and ideals as a movement remain constant. Our anger is prompted by the same causes; our inspiration will always come from the delivery of policy into changed lives, new opportunities and a better world.

The Labour Party needs the Fabians and others to ensure that that anger is channelled, and we have the policies that reflect the needs of each generation, achieving our aims in ways which are relevant and progressive. After 9 years of Government in the UK, and after 7 years of leading government in Scotland, party members and supporters need to be part of the renewal of ideas which will help deliver further opportunities in government to change the lives of current and future generations of Scots.

That is just one of the reasons I welcome the publication of 'Narrowing the Gap' the Fabian Commission on Life Chances and Child Poverty report, and why I hope Scottish Fabians will take up this challenge and encourage the party at all levels to help form the next steps in delivering a Scotland free from poverty, and bursting with aspiration for every young Scot.

Scotland's Journey

I want to talk today about where we go next with devolution. But, as the party of change we must constantly remind ourselves of changes we have made, and on which we build. While building a new form of government is a challenge, there is real progress seven years on. We are a far better country than we were in 1999.

I don't measure that progress on the basis of spending extra money.

I measure that on results:

• The numbers in work are up – well over 150,000 more jobs in Scotland since devolution.
• Our school results are up – and for youngsters at the end of second year, the proportion reaching the expected attainment is up from 41% in 1999 to 59%.
• Crime is coming down – and the new powers to tackle anti social behaviour are starting to restore respect to the most badly affected communities.
• Our health waiting times are down. This week, the National Health Service in Scotland reported its best waiting times in history. A 55% decrease in the number of people waiting over 18 weeks for an inpatient appointment, and a 68% decrease for those waiting over 18 weeks for an out patient appointment.
• And perhaps most importantly of all, the numbers of people in poverty are down – particularly child poverty. Since 1997 240,000 children have been lifted from absolute poverty, reducing absolute child poverty by 65%. And the gap has been narrowed too. Relative poverty has been reduced by 35%.

This record is important. And this week Labour published an electronic 'little red book' listing all the things we have done since the last election. The actions we have taken that led to this record are important. But our reasons matter more. Take three examples:

Labour introduced universal pre school education for 3 and 4 year olds, because good quality pre school education has an extraordinary effect on children.

It gives them huge advantages in education: an ability at an early stage to enjoy learning, to learn how to learn.

It starts to teach them the soft skills they need in the modern global economy and it gives them confidence and social skills, which stay with them for life.

These pre school years are the best time to break the link between the poor life chances of the parents, and the opportunities life will include for their sons or daughters.

That is why Labour has delivered – and is delivering – a free nursery place for every 3 and 4 year old whose parents want one.

Labour introduced free bus travel for older people. For progressives, there is always a dilemma about whether to deliver universal services or target the money to those who need it the most.

But in this case universal, Scotland wide free bus travel for every one of Scotland's pensioners was exactly the right - Labour - thing to do.

The point of these bus passes is not simply to relieve a financial burden from the poorest pensioners – although it clearly does that.

The point is to liberate a generation of Scotland's older people – and give them a freedom to help enjoy their years in retirement.

And if the bus stops in North Berwick are anything to go by, it is working!

And we have renewed Scotland's historic friendship with Malawi, one of the poorest countries in the world.

Scotland has home rule – and amongst those powers, we have the power and responsibility to promote business and trade abroad. In the context of the modern global economy, we are trying to be smart and sharp in the way that we assist Scottish business do their business successfully overseas.

But even a devolved country like ours, with powers on international development reserved to Westminster, must take a mature responsibility for the world we live in.

Because we value solidarity, we recognise that global issues such as third world poverty and climate change are the responsibility of everyone. And cannot just be left to the big nation states.

We all have a job to do. And the best role for Scotland was to renew our old friendship with Malawi, and share our capacity in devolved services with them. So we help them build their governance, their schools and their hospitals.

You would be hard pressed to find a member of a political party in Scotland who would now publicly disagree with these things. Or at least the first two.

Just because everyone now agrees with what we have done, doesn't mean they, if they had had the opportunity would have done it themselves.

It took Labour values to make these things happen.

The Liberal democrats would never have done them on their own.

The Nationalists couldn't have delivered them.

And, above all, the Conservatives oppose the values that motivated them. But we don't rest there. The bottom line for Labour – the basic requirement for democratic socialists, is progress.

There are times when the Labour movement can be our harshest critics, because you expect nothing less than progress. Progress is expected from a Labour government.

So when I reel off a list of achievements, or set out our record, many Labour voters, Labour members and trade unions think 'so'- and what next?

But that must not stop those of us who believe in progressive change from relentlessly highlighting and repeating those achievements.

Challenging those who say Labour has achieved nothing but never becoming complacent or satisfied, because the values that drove those actions, still motivate us today.

The kind of Scotland…

On the priority issues, Labour leadership of the Scottish Parliament is now, undoubtedly, delivering the better Scotland people wanted.

But as First Minister, I believe we have to stick our necks out too. To raise, and challenge particular trends or traits that hold us back.

I don't expect people to agree with me all of the time – and at times I expect some people to passionately disagree with me.

But I didn't spend 20 years campaigning for home rule and then become First Minister just to manage Scotland. In my time in this job I want to fundamentally change Scotland for the better.

I announced Fresh Talent – a plan to attract immigrants to Scotland, because after decades of emigration – Scotland's population was set to decline significantly. Attracting new talent to Scotland was the right thing to do – even if it was challenging at times for public opinion. Attracting Fresh Talent has not only delivered Scotland's biggest net in migration since records began, but a more diverse Scotland will be a more dynamic and successful Scotland in years to come.

I and my colleagues decided on a full smoking ban – as opposed to a partial one – despite the many protests that it would never work in Scotland.

There are lots of reasons why the full smoking ban was the right thing to do – not least because of the numbers of lives it will save. But for me, there were two specific things that persuaded me.

First of all – every group of young Scots, who spoke or wrote to me about this, without exception, wanted a smoke free Scotland. It was a very powerful signal.

But secondly, the evidence was clear that a partial ban, would have created even greater inequalities between the wealthy and healthy and the poor and sick.

And we have tackled sectarianism too – despite the difficulty in challenging the behaviour of many who could be Labour voters - because all my life I have been appalled by discrimination and violence.

Sectarianism in Scotland represents both prejudice and violence in the raw. You can't stand up to these things in Scotland, unless you are prepared to tackle sectarianism. And we are building a sustainable partnership to do this.

It is that kind of long term thinking and making tough choices that will realise the potential of devolution and achieve the kind of Scotland that the Fabian Society and the Scottish Labour Party were created to deliver.

The choice

There is no doubt that we are about to have the toughest election campaign in Scotland than any of us can remember.

The SNP have a chance to take Scotland to the brink of Independence.

The people of Scotland face a very real choice. A choice that will have a very immediate, but also very long term implications on the lives of each and every Scot.

Breaking up Britain, separating Scotland from the rest of the UK would impact immediately. And the uncertainty of a delay in the plans would cause even more damage.

Currently we benefit from the stability of the UK macro economy, and we have flexibility on the supply side of the economy to give Scotland an advantage. We have the best of both worlds.

Winning the battle of ideas

There is however no other way to win a battle of ideas, than having the most comprehensive, radical, and best ideas of any other political party in the election.

So we will have a policy rich programme that is credible, deliverable – and in touch with the hopes and aspirations of the people of Scotland.

Fundamentally – the basis of our strategy has to be substance.

As you may be aware, in May the Executive published its Futures Project: a major exercise to bench mark Scotland internationally – warts and all. We published on the same day 8 'trends' papers, attempting to predict the 'mega trends' that will affect Scotland, and others, in the next 20 – 25 years.

That project continues, but we have some immediate conclusions to draw.

It is, of course, difficult to predict the future. But there are some things we can't escape from:

Demographic change, globalisation and the rate of technological change

We can't be certain what the future will throw up at us. But, we can be certain that an educated population will be able to adapt and respond better to the challenges and opportunities of the future.

So my absolute conclusion – is that continuous, high quality learning and education has to be Scotland's strategy for the future.

Scotland was the first place in the world to institute a universal schooling system. As a country, we value education and young Scots have always performed well. Scots care about education.

Scotland's education system is good – we are in the top third of OECD countries. But there is a tail of under achievement that holds us back.

And from nurseries, through school to lifelong learning, raising the aspirations and achievements of those young people is the most effective and sustainable way to narrow the gap.

Narrowing the gap

There are some who call themselves socialists who believe that making things equal is the same as progress. That we need to bring down those at the top.

But, I want to say very clearly, that I do not believe in that route. It is wrong to send a signal that it is ok to reach so far, but somebody somewhere will put a limit on success, or a barrier to ultimate ambition.

Our objective has to be, that those at the bottom want to and can move more rapidly upwards.

Social mobility has been slowing down, for the smaller number at the bottom. Improving their life chances is even harder than it was for the reforming Labour governments of the 20th century.

To do so requires action on drugs and crime, health and employment.

But I believe we the best tool we have at our disposal is education. There is simply no better way to liberate individuals from poverty than exposing them to the wonders of learning and knowledge.

Robert Owen was the pioneer of infant schooling in New Lanark, in what the modern world would have called a pilot. He said in the early 19th century:

I know that society may be formed so as to exist without crime, without poverty, with health greatly improved, with little, if any misery, and with intelligence and happiness increased a hundredfold: and no obstacle whatsoever intervenes at this moment except ignorance to prevent such a state of society from becoming universal.

In other words Owen believed that poverty, ill health and crime would end if ignorance ended. Intelligence and happiness would be secured through education.

That is true today as it was then.

And that is why, I believe the third term of the Scottish Parliament should be defined by the next – revolutionary – steps that need to be taken to improve the education of Scots.

It makes sense intellectually. It makes sense politically. But above all – it is the right thing to do – a Labour thing to do.

This week we have began to lay out Labour's plans for 2007. A full employment agency and radical improvements in basic skills and vocational education.

We are working now on the policies that will create the major step change in the standards we need to have Scotland's schools up with the best.

It may mean some tough choices. We can't afford to do everything – and making one thing a priority, means we need to choose not to do everything else.

We will not make promises we can't keep. But my first promise for the next election is one people know we will keep. And that is to put education and learning at the top of Labour's Scottish agenda.

Because spending more money – more tax payers' money - on education is an investment.

It is the purest form of investment. Investment in human potential.

Education at its best should prepare our young people to compete in the modern global economy, provide our children with the knowledge and the skills they need to compete and the hunger for learning that can stay through out their lives.

Education at its best is life changing. The life chances it provides should be unlimited. Education at it worst does the opposite, it divides children at an early age, provides opportunities and life chances for a few and manages the rest through the system, making inequalities worse not better. It encourages some children to get on while others are held back, this is a waste of potential not only for the children but for our country.

My main point is that education therefore is the only investment which drives all things. It creates life chances and opportunities, it drives economic growth and productivity, and it promotes social inclusion and cultural development.

When we achieve this for all children, Scotland will be a country ready to compete, ready to take up opportunities in the global economy. A place were business can flourish, which can build and attract decent fulfilling jobs. And we'll be a better country with a stronger society too.

Most people who know me, would expect me to make education and young people a priority for the next election.

I might be 14 years out of the classroom, but the single greatest pleasure I get from this job, is meeting young Scots. On Tuesday night I was celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Princes Trust; talking to youngsters with challenging lives who have found the support and inspiration to turn away from a life of crime or despair and find new confidence to raise their aspirations and enjoy life to the full.

One young man spoke from the platform about the mess he had been in, and how now he has a job, home and a plan to go to college.

It was an emotional but inspiring moment.

And on Thursday night at the first Project Scotland awards, I met young volunteers who have chosen, from very different backgrounds, and all parts of Scotland, to make a contribution to the lives of others. And at the same time have transformed their own lives. If ever there was a group of youngsters who are now having ideas above their station – it was them.

Despite the continuing problem of anti social behaviour in too many areas, there are young Scots everywhere who are an inspiration to me – and they should be to you too. I want all young Scots to believe in themselves and have the chance to be all they can be. But even today there is a gap between the majority who can, and those who fall behind.

Our historic mission as a party and a movement is to narrow that gap – perhaps even close it. And the best way to close those gaps in a way which raises the life chances of those who are at the bottom, rather than pulling down the aspiration and opportunities of those reaching for the top, is through education.

That is our challenge, it is our historic mission.

Let's ensure the 3rd Scottish Parliament makes it happen.

This is the full text of a speech given by the First Minister of Scotland, Jack McConnell MSP to the Fabian Scottish Conference, on Saturday 2nd September 2006.