Clause 31
Education and Inspections Bill
Public Bill Committees, 27 April 2006, 2:30 pm
Angela Smith (PPS (Yvette Cooper, Minister of State), Office of the Deputy Prime Minister; Sheffield, Hillsborough, Labour)
I oppose the amendment on the ground that many local authorities follow the established principle of allowing 20 per cent. of places on charity boards or trust boards that are partly funded by the public sector, or whose purposes are funded by the public sector, to be taken by local authority nominees. Sports trusts and the arts are two examples, and housing increasingly involves arm’s-length management, which requires 20 per cent. representation by local authority nominees.
If we accept the amendment, we will set an unhelpful precedent that would call into question arrangements for local authority representation on charities and trusts that are already in place throughout the country.