Financial Services Bill — Committee (4th Day) (Continued)

Part of the debate – in the House of Lords at 4:30 pm on 18 July 2012.

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Photo of Lord Flight Lord Flight Conservative 4:30, 18 July 2012

My Lords, although I acknowledge the issue, I do not believe it is that difficult. I observe that my own parents learnt basic accounting some 90 years ago at ordinary grammar schools in London as part of the general certificate. That stood them in pretty good stead. Even in my time, when I was doing basic economics, what I learnt was pretty fundamental to understanding what equity was, what debt was, and so forth. The courses that are up and running are pretty effective-for example in my own school, of which I have been a governor for many years-although I do not say that they are perfect. One of the problems is that since the Second World War, money has almost been thought of as dirty within the educational world. This is something to shy away from. One of the crucial things is for the schools themselves to have staff who can be taught to teach and be enthusiastic about the subject.