§ 22. Mr. STUART-WORTLEYasked the President of the Board of Education whether it has been brought to his notice that certain local education authorities, in inviting tenders for tools for manual training classes, have specified foreign-made saws to be supplied, to the exclusion of British-made; and whether he can use any influence with local education authorities to prevent the sale of foreign-made goods being pushed by British public servants and to suggest the undesirability of the youth of the country being brought up with the idea that British-made tools are not good enough for them?
Mr. PEASEA case has been brought to my notice in which certain tools of foreign manufacture were specified in a list of tools required for manual training classes. In approving equipment for these classes the function of the Board of Education is confined to consideration of the suitability and adequacy of the equipment and of the reasonableness of the cost, and they have no power to interfere as to their source of origin with the discretion of the local education authorities concerned, who are responsible for the provision of the equipment of classes provided by them.
§ Mr. STUART-WORTLEYIn spite of the technical point, may I ask whether the 15 right hon. Gentleman would do what Departments have often done, and send a circular to those local authorities, pointing out the extreme undesirability of these gratuitous disparagements of the credit of British craftmanship?
Mr. PEASEI think it is a matter which may really be left to the discretion of the local authorities.