The law on closing rural schools is to change following a consultation exercise, the Scottish Government has announced. The move has been welcomed by the Scottish Conservatives, with the current process described as “deeply flawed”. The Commission on the Delivery of Rural Education said the new system would be more transparent, allowing parents and communities to take more part in decision-making. Among the topics addressed in the report were how the closures of rural schools are handled, the role of local authorities and the Scottish Government in that process, and the possibility of giving schools who escape the axe a five-year grace period before the move is reconsidered. Scottish Conservative young people spokeswoman Liz Smith MSP said: “I welcome the results of the public consultation following the recommendations made by the Commission on the Delivery of Rural Education. “It was very clear indeed that the existing process is deeply flawed and not fully transparent, and that public trust has been diminished. “The best educational interests of all pupils must be at the forefront of decision-making, as must the sustainability of local communities for whom schools are so often a focal point. “In the existing situation, too many communities have fallen victim to a highly political process which often sees local authorities and the Scottish Government at loggerheads, and that is unacceptable. “An independent referral mechanism should help to address this, but that will only be the case if the powers of ministers are both clearly defined and significantly curtailed in comparison to the present system, and if the role of local authorities is given much greater clarity. “All of Scotland wants to see a system where schools support communities rather than become political footballs.”