Ulster Unionist Party Leader Jon Burrows MLA has warned that reversing Northern Ireland's declining reading standards will require more reading and less screen time, greater parental awareness, stronger early-years support and less bureaucracy so teachers can teach.

The latest PISA results show that Northern Ireland's average reading score fell from 497 in 2015 to 482 in 2025.

Jon Burrows said:

“This decline is part of a global trend, but it is clearly affecting Northern Ireland and cannot be ignored.

“We must start in the early years, encouraging parents to read to their children, encouraging independent reading and managing screen time. Promoting reading needs to be a strategic project.

“Teachers across Northern Ireland have repeatedly raised with me the impact of less reading and more time spent online. Primary-school teachers are even seeing children aged four, five and six using American words and pronunciations picked up from online content.

“Technology has educational benefits, but endless scrolling and short-form videos are no substitute for reading, conversation and imaginative play.

“Our teachers are also overworked and weighed down by bureaucracy. The answer is not another initiative or reporting requirement. They need proper support and the freedom to get on with what they do best - teaching.

“Reading develops language, concentration, imagination and confidence. Reversing this decline requires action at home, investment in the early years and teachers who are free to teach.”