Some pupils will be paid to stay on in school

Details of the scheme were announced by Lifelong Learning Minister Jim Wallace during a visit to Dundee.

An Educational Maintenance Allowance (EMA) of up to �30 a week will be given to certain pupils up to the age of 19.

The allowances are to be introduced later this the year, following a trial in Tayside.

The executive hopes the project will benefit youngsters who might have been forced to leave school or college at an early age in order to earn money.

Financial support will take the form of weekly payments and bonuses, with educational establishments able to withhold the cash if attendance is not maintained.

It will ensure more and more youngsters are able to fulfil their potential and remain in education Jim Wallace Lifelong Learning Minister

Pilot programmes have already taken place in East Ayrshire, West Dunbartonshire and Glasgow.

Mr Wallace announced the project at Dundee's Craigie High School on Tuesday.

He said: "The programme has proved extremely effective in the areas where it has been tested and I am sure it will now boost participation across the country.

'Drive economy'

"It will ensure more and more youngsters are able to fulfil their potential and remain in education.

"In the long term, this means the workforce of tomorrow will have the range of skills necessary to drive the Scottish economy forward for years to come."

Up to 40,000 youngsters are expected to benefit from the scheme, costing the executive �49m over the next four years.

The payments will be graded at �30 per week for pupils coming from a household where the income is less than �19,600, �20 for incomes of up to �24,000 and �10 for incomes up to �30,000.

The take up of the programme has been very good and it has been administered without any suggestion of a stigma Anne Wilson Dundee City Council

The money will be paid directly to the pupils.

Dundee City Council's director of education, Anne Wilson, said the scheme was a success and youngsters were able to concentrate on their studies without the burden of financial concerns.

"The take-up of the programme has been very good and it has been administered without any suggestion of a stigma attached to those who receive it, which was a major consideration," she said.

Pupil Alasdair Meek, 16, said the EMA had enabled him to continue his education which otherwise may not have been possible.

He said: "Staying on a school has helped me develop the skills I need for the career in the construction industry I hope to pursue."

The scheme was attacked by James Douglas-Hamilton, the Scottish Tories' education spokesman.

He said: "This is simply a bribe which encourages children to stay on at school, rather than find work.

"The main reason for staying on at school should be to try and attain qualifications, not to pick up a subsidy from the taxpayer to spent on clothes and video games.