THE Scottish Greens have unveiled proposals for an independent office to tackle fake news and disinformation, warning it poses a “direct threat” to health and safety.

The party says its upcoming election manifesto will include a suite of policies aimed at tackling the issue, pointing to examples such as the spread of conspiracy theories about the Covid vaccination.

It wants to see a training programme for teachers to help replicate the success of Finland in integrating media literacy and critical thinking into the curriculum.

Describing it as a first for a Scottish Parliament election, Scottish Greens education and media spokesperson Ross Greer said: “The spread of fake news and disinformation is a direct threat not just to our democracy but to our very health and safety.

“Scotland is not immune to this. Recent reports have confirmed that we are a target of deliberate disinformation campaigns from hostile states such as Russia, so we cannot afford a failure to act now.”

He added: “Countries such as Finland are seeing a lot of early success from teaching their children media literacy, critical thinking and an ability to really interrogate what they are being told, particularly online.

“Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence suits exactly this kind of approach, so the Scottish Greens are proposing the rapid development of curricular resources and a training programme for teachers.

“We’re also proposing public awareness campaigns aimed at adults and the creation of a new independent office to coordinate efforts aimed at tackling this problem head on.”

Meanwhile, the Greens yesterday launched proposals for tackling drugs, urging more “person-centred” policies. Party co-leader Lorna Slater called for it to be considered a health issue as opposed to a legal one.

She said: “Greens believe that there are bold steps that can be taken now to address the national scandal of drug deaths.”