A Roman Catholic boarding school in the UK has become one of the first of its kind to close in the face of Labour’s VAT raid on private education.
The tax change is cited as a factor in the shutdown of Kilgraston School, near Bridge of Earn, Perthshire, on Tuesday.
Local authorities are now rushing to accommodate the 249 pupils affected – but space is at a premium in council-run schools.
Other independent schools in the UK could soon be in a similar predicament, with thousands of children left trying to find a place in the hard-pressed state sector.
Also in Scotland, the 100-pupil Cedars School in Greenock will close next month.
Labour is pushing ahead with its plans to remove the VAT exemption and business rates relief for private schools from January 1 in an attempt to raise £1.5billion.