Teachers in two trade unions have voted almost unanimously to reject the pay deal put forward by Scottish ministers.

EIS general secretary Larry Flanagan said the “landmark” 98 per cent vote against the pay deal by his union was “one of the strongest rejections of an offer in EIS history”.

Meanwhile, the SSTA union announced 97 per cent of its members who took part in a ballot voted to reject the offer, with only three per cent prepared to accept it.

Education Secretary John Swinney said the offer to teachers was “the best pay deal in the UK for 2018-19”, adding it was “disappointing” it was rejected.

Almost three-quarters of eligible members in both unions had taken part in the ballots, with turnouts of 74 per cent and 73 per cent for the EIS and the SSTA respectively.

A third union, the NASUWT, said it would now “consider a formal ballot for industrial action” in the pay row after a survey or more than 1000 teachers found 54per cent are so angry about the current pay deal they are prepared to take action.

Mr Swinney has already said while teachers are being offered a three per cent pay rise across the board, restructuring of the main pay grade scale and annual progression meant most teachers would receive a rise of between five per cent and 11 per cent.

“This was the best pay deal in the UK for 2018-19 so it is disappointing that teachers have rejected what I believe was a strong and fair offer,” he said.

“All teachers on the main grade scale were offered at least a five per cent annual increase, with some receiving up to 11 per cent in conjunction with their annual progression.”

The Education Secretary added there would be talks, saying ministers would “engage positively with the unions and with Cosla to seek to strike a pay deal”.

The EIS, Scotland’s largest teaching union, has been campaigning for a 10 per cent rise for all teachers, with tens of thousands of protesters taking to the streets of Glasgow last month in support of this.

Gail Macgregor, resources spokeswoman for the local government body Cosla, said: “The trade unions claim for 10per cent increase in one year cannot be met within the resources we currently have available.”

Mr Flanagan said the rejection of the pay offer was indicative of the current mood of Scotland’s teachers.