Mr Robin Squire: My hon. Friend is spot on. We intend to continue that record during the next Parliament, when we are returned at the forthcoming election. Finally, the Education Bill currently before Parliament and the other measures outlined in our White Paper build on the success of LMS and the GM programme by offering schools even greater freedom. Of course, success is also a question of school...
Mr Robin Squire: The hon. Gentleman knows that two of the larger quangos are the Further Education Funding Council and the Higher Education Funding Council. The logic of what he says is that they should be funded directly by Government. Is that really what he means?
Mr Robin Squire: Lancashire county council has recently made a number of representations to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State about education funding. I met representatives of Lancashire county council's education committee on 20 November last year to discuss funding for education in Lancashire.
Mr Robin Squire: My right hon. Friend is right in every respect. I congratulate him and my hon. Friends in Lancashire on the representations that they have made to the Government on education funding. He is also right to point out that, in the past two years alone, Lancashire has received increases of some £45 million in its education standard spending assessment. It is now up to the council, given its total...
Mr Robin Squire: I certainly will not confirm the hon. Gentleman's figures without notice, but if he wants confirmation from me, he need only table an appropriate written question. As for the wider issue, he clearly overlooks the fact that, throughout the period that he mentioned, and for many years before that, the county council has been responsible for determining its priorities. Nothing in the sums given...
Mr Robin Squire: Cheshire's provisional standard spending assessment per primary school pupil in 1997–98 is £1,976. That is £73 per pupil, or 3·8 per cent. more than this year. Now it is up to the authority to ensure that the increase in spending power that we are providing reaches the schools.
Mr Robin Squire: I congratulate Cheshire local education authority, under its Conservative chairmanship, on giving education higher priority. As for the review of the area cost adjustment, my hon. Friend will be aware that we decided not to implement the recommendations in 1997–1998 essentially because more work needs to be done on the review team's findings. My hon. Friend is also aware—she referred to...
Mr Robin Squire: On the contrary—to cite, in particular, the policy to which the hon. Lady adverted, far from damaging education in Cheshire, the nursery voucher scheme gives Cheshire and every local education authority an opportunity to enhance current pre-school provision. In the hon. Lady's constituency, more vouchers will shortly be going out than there are currently places for four-year-olds. That will...
Mr Robin Squire: I note my hon. Friend's suggestion. It would clearly reduce the number of questions that I have to answer, so I can see an advantage there. As my hon. Friend knows, thanks to his wide and long experience in education, there will always be discussions between Government and local authorities. We have a national system that seeks to distribute funds fairly throughout all authorities. Most...
Mr Robin Squire: In 1994–95, the latest year for which data are available, Staffordshire spent £1,645 per pre-primary and primary pupil, in 1996–97 prices. In 1978–79, the equivalent figure was £1,240.
Mr Robin Squire: My hon. Friend, who has been a Member of Parliament for many years, well remembers events under that Labour Government, and he is absolutely right. One can reach only one conclusion if one compares the Government's dedication to funding education and commitment to higher standards with our predecessor's: do not trust another Labour Government.
Mr Robin Squire: The hon. Gentleman repeats Labour's pledge—some would call it vandalism—to abolish assisted places. However, he has not repeated the fact that, in the first year, abolition of the scheme would save under £5 million. As he knows—because it has been reiterated by Labour spokesmen—that £5 million is somehow supposed to produce class sizes of no more than 30, whereas the minimum cost of...
Mr Robin Squire: My hon. Friend is completely right about the highest-ever sums being spent on education. On standards, whether we are considering examination results or unauthorised absences from school, time and again Labour-controlled authorities are at the bottom of every table. Far from providing an answer on how to raise standards in our schools, Labour demonstrates by its actions that it has no idea...
Mr Robin Squire: In 1994–95, there were 14 such authorities. This year the Government have announced a further hefty increase—an extra £633 million—in provision for local education authorities. I urge all LEAs to deliver that spending power to schools and not to use it to fund bureaucracy.
Mr Robin Squire: I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his question. I can confirm that the increase in Devon's education standard spending assessment is 3.8 per cent., which is above the national average. Of course—as he is aware, but as some of his constituents, misled by placard wavers, may not be aware—between 1979–80 and 1994–95 the Government increased funding per pupil by 48 per cent., after...
Mr Robin Squire: I was going to keep a shroud over the list of 14 authorities in the original question, but as the hon. Gentleman tempts me to name some of them, I can confirm that Sheffield, Camden and Durham are also in that list.
Mr Robin Squire: I can certainly confirm my hon. Friend's last point. We are taking careful account of the many representations that we received in the consultation earlier this year. On what I judge to be my hon. Friend's central point about local management of schools schemes and the way in which local authorities distribute funding to schools, it is a good responsibility for LEAs to keep such things up to...
Mr Robin Squire: The hon. Gentleman has underlined why we invariably look to the Liberal Democrat Benches for classic humbug as opposed to occasional humbug. On administration, I can give the hon. Gentleman a straight answer. What matters is how each and every local authority and central Government make efficiency savings year on year. Averages often disguise the truth. What matters is that all LEAs have the...
Mr Robin Squire: Obviously, I shall consider my hon. Friend's suggestion, but I know, from his long experience in education matters and his knowledge of the highways and byways, that he will continue to publicise the poor administration record of the Labour and Liberal Democrat-controlled Kent LEA.
Mr Robin Squire: First, let me confirm that the proposal in the summer White Paper has not been withdrawn. It does not feature in current legislation, precisely because there is a need for widespread consultation among schools and LEAs and because some of the figure work will be fairly complex. Secondly, I am quite prepared to believe that some schools do not wish to have a greater share of their budget...
