MSPs voted against a national pay deal

Despite Scottish National Party support, 70 MSPs voted against the proposal, with 44 in favour.

First Minister Jack McConnell has refused to intervene in the long-running nursery nurses' pay dispute.

He said it would be "entirely wrong" to impose a deal and it was a matter for employers and the union.

Deals have been struck in a number of council areas, but public sector union Unison wants a national agreement.

Local authorities and the union representing nursery nurses need to negotiate a settlement First Minister Jack McConnell

West of Scotland MSP Frances Curran led the debate for the SSP.

With about 100 nursery nurses in the public gallery, the mother-of-one told parliament: "I appreciate the time and care, day in and day out, that all of you invest in my son and thousands of children like him."

Ms Curran said the executive had given nursery nurses more duties and responsibilities but no more pay.

"It is a double standard, it is rich and it is utter hypocrisy," she said.

Pay and conditions

But Mr McConnell later ruled out any possibility of the executive stepping in to impose a national settlement.

The first minister urged all those involved to settle the dispute as soon as possible.

He said: "It would be entirely wrong for us as a Scottish Executive to seek at this stage to impose on nursery nurses or any other group or any group of local authorities an alternative method of determining pay settlements.

Nursery nurses are staging an indefinite strike

"That is what is at the core of this issue - that local authorities and the union representing nursery nurses need to negotiate a settlement here that is fair to the nursery nurses and is within their agreed procedures."

Unison and local government umbrella group Cosla have been at loggerheads since 2003 over current pay and conditions.

Local deals have been struck with staff in nine out of 32 council areas.

At present nursery nurses earn about �13,000 a year but they want an extra �4,000 to reflect additional duties they have had to undertake.