That concludes our live coverage of FMQs.

If you're just joining us or need a recap here are the main headlines from the session:

• Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross challenged the first minister on an international education report which says Scotland's high schools have slipped in terms of reading, maths and science
• The first minister defended the government's record on education and insisted the curriculum was "working for young people".
• Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar also asked about the education report, focusing on outcomes for pupils from the most deprived areas.
• Sarwar also asked the first minister to apologise after revealing that there were fewer ASN teachers despite a rise in children being identified with support needs.
• Humza Yousaf refused to apologise and instead highlighted figures where Scotland's education sector was performing better
• The first minister was also questioned on obesity rates, FOI reform and policing budgets.

Thank you for joining us. The editor was Catherine Lyst. The writers were Paul Hastie and Auryn Cox with further contributions by Jamie Russell, Oliver Coe and Zainab Ashraf.

FMQs concludes with a point of order from Tory MSP Russell Findlay. He says a visitor to Holyrood with a pin badge with symbols denoting female chromosomes had it confiscated, and was told it was in contravention of its policy on political slogans on clothing.

He said the same woman had been previously asked to leave a committee for wearing a purple, white and green scarf - colours historically associated with the suffragette movement and more recently adopted by gender critical feminism.

The MSP said he doesn’t know if it was “petty, plain stupidity or something more sinister”.

Findlay says MSPs display a range of badges, and says “there cannot be one rule for MSPs and another for those who pay our wages”.

The presiding officer responds, saying it is not a matter for him to rule on from the chair and suggests he takes the matter up with Holyrood’s corporate body.

Clare Haughey, the SNP MSP for Rutherglen, describes the home secretary’s new immigration plans as “a raft of right-wing policies”.

She asks the FM to confirm that the Scottish government will continue to welcome and value the contributions of immigrants in Scotland to the economy, NHS and social-care sector.

Yousaf references that in the past the UK had "begged" immigrants, such as his grandfather, to come to this country to help with labour shortages.

He says the plans are “not only morally repugnant but economically illiterate”.

Image source, Getty Images

Police Scotland announced on Wednesday that it has opened a voluntary redundancy scheme for civilian staff.

It comes after the force warned that 3,000 officer and staff jobs were at risk without further investment from the Scottish government.

Unison, the union representing staff, described the voluntary redundancy scheme as "short-sighted" and would "leave gaps in frontline policing".

The Scottish government said policing was a priority and its funding had been increased to £1.45bn in 2023-24.

A Police Scotland spokesman said the force had been "very clear" about the pressures on policing because of this year's budget settlement.

"Our commitment to no compulsory redundancies remains in place," it said.

• Police Scotland to open voluntary redundancy scheme to civilian staff
• Police Scotland warns of funding threat to 3,000 jobs - BBC News

Labour MSP Pauline McNeill asks the first minister how he intends to address concerns raised by trade unions and Police Scotland over budget cuts to the force.

Her question follows the news this week that Police Scotland is offering a voluntary redundancy scheme as the force warned jobs would be at risk without government funding.

Humza Yousaf replies that to say there has been budget cuts in relation to the police is "wholly incorrect".

"We are investing £1.45b in policing in 2023/24 and we are also increasing the resource budget by 6.3% - that's an additional £80m," he says.

The first minister adds that what is important to the Scottish government is to ensure Police Scotland is funded and that Scotland is a safer place.

Image source, Getty Images

The Scottish government was criticised after refusing to reform Freedom of Information (FoI) laws.

Under the 2002 Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act, anyone has the right to access information held by public bodies in Scotland - including the government, local authorities, the NHS, the police and universities and colleges.

The government has been urged to extend the rules so they apply to all bodies providing public services.

Following a consultation, ministers said they were "not persuaded" to extend the "rigorous" rules this parliamentary term.

MSPs were told the government remained "open" to making changes if required.

• Read more here
• Scotland's FoI system 'harmed' by lack of reform

Labour MSP Katy Clark asks Humza Yousaf if the Scottish government will outline any plans it has for freedom of information reform.

The first minister says his government’s performance on FOIs is “on track” and says its average response rate of 97% comes despite a 60% rise in requests since 2019 - to nearly 5,000 a year.

Yousaf says this “significantly exceeds” the performance of the UK government which responds to only 83% within 20 days.

He insists the SNP has a “good record” on freedom of information.

Image source, Scottish Parliament

Conservative MSP Brian Whittle questions Yousaf on what measures the Scottish government is taking to address the impact of obesity on the Scottish economy and NHS.

Yousaf says preventing obesity is a “public health priority”. He says the government have provided £8m to help children and adults manage their weight.

Whittle replies that Scotland has a reputation for being one of the most unhealthy nations in Europe while sports and leisure facilities are not adequately funded, leading to greater ill health.

The first minister agrees that a lack of physical activity is a driver of obesity, as is poverty, but he says last week’s Autumn Statement from the UK government prioritised tax cuts for the wealthy over investment in public services.

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton says the SNP is “squandering” the global advantage Scotland once held on education.

He says schools are suffering because the SNP is pushing councils towards bankruptcy and he poses a “maths problem” to the first minister.

Cole-Hamilton says Scotland was awarded 506 points in the Pisa rankings before the SNP came to power, and this year it was given 471. He asks “which is better?”.

Yousaf says he refuses to be “lectured on education” by the party that broke its promise on tuition fees.

He says the the SNP has made education progress in the face of austerity caused by the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats.

Sarwar tries to paint a broader picture of a government in declinepublished at 12:40 Greenwich Mean Time 7 December 2023

12:40 GMT 7 December 2023

Philip Sim
BBC Scotland political correspondent

Understandably, given it is a core devolved topic, Anas Sarwar also picked up on the education story.

He took his own tack by focusing on outcomes for pupils from the most deprived areas - perhaps hoping to burnish Labour’s credentials as representing the working classes.

He also picked out a figure which wasn’t featured in Mr Yousaf’s binder of statistics - the number of additional support needs teachers.

Like Douglas Ross, Sarwar hoped to paint a broader picture of a government in “decline”, with “no-one else to blame” after so long in power.

Humza Yousaf again tried to turn the debate onto more beneficial figures, and resorted to another classic FMQs trope - reference to “Labour-run Wales”, which has also struggled in the Pisa rankings.

He acknowledged there are challenges - but had a whole range of figures for positive outcomes, which he said would not apologise for.

All of it sounds like the sort of debate we can expect to hear at length come the next election.

Anas Sarwar says the number of children identified with additional support needs has increased from more than 36,500 in 2007 to more than 240,000 now in 2023.

"But over the same period the number of ASN teachers has fallen by over 200. Leaving many children without the level of support they need," he says.

He asks if the first minister will apologise to the people of Scotland for "destroying our once world-leading education system".

Humza Yousaf responds by saying the question was hyperbole.

He adds that some of the data is concerning but says he will not apologise for ACL results which show "the biggest single year fall in the attainment gap across primary schools in both numeracy and literacy".

"Yes there are challenges, yes the Pisa results are serious and we will reflect on that and consider those results and come forward next week with more detail on the action we will take," he says.

"But because of this governments actions we have more young people going into positive destinations than before and that is not something I will apologise for."

The Labour leader says parents and teachers are doing a great job but are being failed by "this pathetic SNP government".

He says the Pisa results show Scotland is on a trajectory of decline and asks if the number of teachers for children with additional support needs has increased or decreased.

Humza Yousaf replies that he does not have that figure to hand but says despite UK austerity the Scottish government is investing in its education sector.

He points out that teachers in Scotland are the highest paid in the UK.

Anas Sarwar is up next and also leads with Pisa results.

The Labour leader says that in 2012 Scotland had the highest-attaining students from poorer backgrounds in the UK, but by 2022 those in the most deprived areas were the lowest attaining among the four nations.

He asks: "How have the SNP allowed this to happen?"

The first minister reiterates that the Scottish government takes the Pisa results seriously.

He says it is important to make sure Scotland is not on a trajectory of decline when it comes to school results.

Yousaf seeks to shift the education debatepublished at 12:27 Greenwich Mean Time 7 December 2023

12:27 GMT 7 December 2023

Philip Sim
BBC Scotland political correspondent

The Pisa scores were predictably the first topic to be raised by Douglas Ross.

And Covid was predictably cited as one reason for the “poor set of results” - and a reason why Humza Yousaf says commentary around the scores is “unfair”.

But beyond the fact other countries were clearly hit by Covid too, it is the longer-term trend which is the real concern for Mr Ross, who noted that figures having been on the slide since far before the pandemic.

Mr Yousaf sought to shift the debate, and find solace in different statistical measures. This resort to the big binder of facts and figures was a favourite tactic of his predecessor Nicola Sturgeon - who famously promised to make schooling her top priority.

The first minister wanted to paint a “holistic picture”, drawing in other figures which are less uncomfortable for his government - like those on students who end up in a “positive destination”, and funding per pupil.

But the opposition point to a bigger picture too - that the SNP has been in power for 16 years, so the current state of core devolved services lies squarely at their feet.

Douglas Ross says the Scottish education system was once one of the best in the world, but now ranks behind many other nations and asks Yousaf to admit that the SNP record on schools is a “national disgrace”.

The first minister says that he “accepts” the poor results but says the Conservatives don’t want to listen about some of the positive progress in Scottish education, citing a list of statistics when improvements have been made.

Ross says the Scottish government’s curriculum for excellence has been a disaster and the SNP’s “flawed plans” have cost Scotland’s children and it needs to be scrapped.

But Yousaf says Scottish Tory Liz Smith previously supported the Curriculum for Excellence when she was the party’s education spokesman, as did Scottish Conservative Jamie Greene.

The first minister insists the curriculum is “working for young people”.

Humza Yousaf says he “does not take lightly” the Pisa report.

He says the Scottish government is reflecting on a “poor set of results” and the education secretary will make a statement next week.

But the first minister says some of the commentary around the results is “unfair” saying that investment per pupil is higher in Scotland than in England and wales.

And he says that Douglas Ross suggesting the system is failing, from one set of results, is “simply not true”.

Image source, Getty Images

Earlier this week international research on education showed standards in Scotland had slipped.

The Pisa report revealed a long-term decline in Scotland's performance in reading, maths and science.

The report measures standards among nearly 700,000 15-year-olds worldwide.

Within the UK's four devolved education systems, England was the highest achiever in all three subjects.

Scottish ministers said Covid restrictions had a "profound impact" on education.

• Scottish education performance falling, says study

The first question to the first minister is on performance in Scotland's high schools, which has slipped, according to the Pisa report on education.

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross says the international research found Scotland’s results had declined to “record lows”

He asks Humza Yousaf what he has to say to the generation of young Scots who have been “failed by the SNP”.

Topic of the week is educationpublished at 11:55 Greenwich Mean Time 7 December 2023

11:55 GMT 7 December 2023

Philip Sim
BBC Scotland political correspondent

Humza Yousaf wasn't even away for a week for his trip to the Cop28 climate summit.

But it still feels like a huge amount has happened since the first minister last took questions from MSPs.

There is the usual range of domestic issues, from waiting times in the NHS to the prison service’s new policy for transgender inmates.

But probably the overriding topic of the week is education, after Scotland’s performance slid in the international Pisa rankings.

Boosting schooling was famously once the government’s number one priority, but opposition members may contend that little progress seems to have been made - for all that ministers will undoubtedly point to the impact of Covid.

Mr Yousaf will perhaps be comforted somewhat by the fact the UK government faces even more turmoil, as its immigration policy slides into chaos.

It would not be surprising if he found an excuse to drop in a few digs about that, or indeed Sir Keir Starmer’s recent media references to Margaret Thatcher.

Good morning.

First Minister Humza Yousaf will be taking questions from opposition leaders in the Scottish Parliament's weekly Q&A session at 12pm.

Follow the action as it happens using the tabs above.