§ MR. D. A. THOMAS (Merthyr Tydvil)asked leave to introduce a Bill to amend the law relating to the management of public elementary schools not provided by the local education authority. He said its object was to amend the Education Act of 1902 by providing that the local authority should have two-thirds representation on the managament of non-provided schools instead of one-third as at present, or, in other words, that out of the six managers four should be appointed by the local education authority instead of two. An Amendment of that kind, he said, was proposed when the Act of 1902 was under discussion in that House, and was supported by the whole of the then Opposition who were now on the Government side of the House. Since then the country had undoubtedly given the Government a mandate in favour of popular control. Unfortunately the Government so far had not been able to give effect to that mandate, and there seemed to be no prospect of their doing so in this Parliament. The Bill was urgent in the case of Wales, where a revolt policy had been adopted. He was not going to justify that policy, but the fact remained, whether it was right or not, that it had been adopted by nearly all the education authorities in Wales, and it was likely to remain so unless some amendment was made. He hoped and believed that this Bill would remove the friction and bitterness which existed in Wales, and also remove any excuse for the policy adopted by the local authorities. The Welsh local authorities declined to contribute anything out of the rates towards the maintenance of non-provided schools because they had no measure of control over them. A discrimination was made by the local education authorities between the two classes of schools—public and denominational—and over that discrimination the Board of Education had no authority or control whatever. The result was that in Glamorganshire, which was far the largest county in Wales, something like 38 or 40 per cent. more money was spent out of county funds on public than on denominational schools. Although the education in the non-provided schools came up to the statutory efficiency required by the Board of Education, the standard could not be the same as in the provided schools. That inflicted hard- 984 ships upon the teachers, who did not receive the same salaries, and the children not only of Churchmen and Catholics, but also of Nonconformists, who attended; those schools must in consequence suffer. The system had engendered an amount of bitterness in Wales of which the majority of Members of that House had no conception. He hoped the House would agree to the introduction of the Bill, and that the Prime Minister would carefully consider whether he could give facilities for its progress.
§ Motion made, and Question, "That leave be given to bring in a Bill to amend the law relating to the management of public elementary schools not provided by the local education authority"—(Mr. D. A. Thomas)—put, and agreed to.
§ Bill ordered to be brought in by Mr. David Alfred Thomas, Mr. Abraham (Rhondda), Mr. Brace, Mr. David Davies, Mr. Samuel Evans, Colonel Herbert, Sir David Brynmor Jones, Mr. Lloyd Morgan, Mr. Wynford Philipps, Mr. Robinson, and Mr. Osmond Williams.