Clause 49 - Report of inspections
Childcare Bill
2:45 pm
Annette Brooke (Shadow Minister, Education & Skills; Mid Dorset and North Poole, Liberal Democrat)
Amendment No. 274 is another one of the “nots” that I am endeavouring to put into the Bill. The very fact that the Government have two “nots” in clause 41 shows that there is value in not being too prescriptive. Obviously, adding the amendment would be reassuring. As the newspaper articles that I referred to were, in fact, in The Guardian, I was surprised that Labour Members, as well as some Opposition Members, suggested that they were from the tabloids. That was the problem: the quality press made the Bill the main story the day after its launch.
The amendment would ensure that we do not start getting league tables of any sort. That does not mean that Ofsted reports should not be published and made fully accessible, but things develop as part of the desire to drive up standards. That would be incredibly undesirable in this sector.