CUTTING class sizes for younger pupils has been "more difficult" to implement than expected, Education Secretary Mike Russell said today.
But he insisted that progress is being made across the country after an SNP pledge to cut all classes for P1-3 pupils to 18 or less.
This has been scaled back to 20% of classes by August this year and Mr Russell told Holyrood's Education Committee today this will benefit 11,000 pupils.
He said: "Am I disappointed that we're not at 100%? Of course.
"This has turned out to be more difficult than anybody anticipated. There have been political difficulties as well as practical difficulties."
Mr Russell told committee convenor Karen Whitefield that the change to 20% of classes was not an attempt to "save face" for the Government.
Instead, he said it is aimed at injecting some fresh "momentum" into the policy after he replaced Fiona Hyslop in the post last year.
He added: "I have believed that this is the right policy for longer than most. I believe that this policy makes a difference."
The Government has already announced plans to have legislation in place by August to close a loophole which led to City of Edinburgh Council stating last week it may have to raise primary one class sizes to 30.
Councils with a P1 class-size cap of 25 have lost a series of legal challenges from parents who want to get children into schools outside their catchment area through placing requests – because the legal limit is 30.
Liberal Democrat Edinburgh West MSP Margaret Smith said her party colleague Marilyne MacLaren, convenor of Edinburgh Council's education committee, spoke out last week in "frustration" after legal advice indicated that they can't cap classes at 25.
Mr Russell said: "I would be very happy to meet with Marilyne MacLaren to make sure that we are both working in the same direction, to make sure we solve this problem.
"I do acknowledge it's a problem and an issue."
A consultation on the proposed Government regulations gets under way next Friday – but they won't affect placing requests for the next school year, which have a deadline of next Monday.
Labour's Ken MacIntosh said that previous evidence to the committee indicated that the "prime reason" class sizes had gone up slightly in primary one last year was the impact of placing requests.
Mr Russell recently said there is unlikely to be a reverse in the 2,000 drop in teacher numbers since the SNP came to power three years ago – despite pledging that these would not fall.
It is a "worry" that teacher numbers could fall still further, according to Mr MacIntosh, who said it was important the Government stops it.
But the cabinet secretary added: "My ambition is to maintain the quality and outcomes in Scotland and to have the right number of teachers to do the job."
