Schedule 4
Education and Inspections Bill
4:30 pm
Nick Gibb (Shadow Minister (Schools), Education; Bognor Regis and Littlehampton, Conservative)
I want to raise one or two issues relating to some of the Government amendments. On Government amendment No. 311, I heard the Minister talk about the fact that paragraph 5 of schedule 3 to the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 relates to grants made by the Secretary of State to the governing body or the trust of a voluntary aided school. Under new paragraph A30 of schedule 22 of the 1998 Act, which the amendment inserts via schedule 4 of the Bill, the Secretary of State may give notice that expenditure using grants made by the Secretary of State will be included in the definition of publicly funded land. What I cannot understand is why it is necessary to have this in such a detailed schedule—it goes into the detail of every conceivable type of land that is included in the schedule—and why the land transfer procedure for some sorts of land should be determined solely in terms of whether the Secretary of State decides to issue a notice. Will the Minister say why she believes that is necessary and why the power is necessary with all the different methods in the schedule?
Amendments Nos. 298 and 304 exempt land that is acquired by means of a grant under schedule 32 of the 1998 Act by a voluntary school from the definition of publicly funded land under this section. Why do voluntary schools have that exemption and other schools, such as foundation schools, do not? If my understanding is right, can the Minister explain why there is a difference?