§ 38. Mr. Lindsayasked the President of the Board of Education whether he has had any formal consultations with local education authorities on the capacity of local rates to bear their proportionate burden of the projected education proposals?
§ The President of the Board of Education (Mr. Butler)No, Sir. As my hon. Friend will see from the Appendix to the White Paper, a progressive increase in the rate of grant to local education authorities is proposed. In the distribution of the grant to individual authorities regard will be had to the circumstances of the poorer authorities.
§ Mr. LindsayCould my right hon. Friend give me any indication as to how far above the average figure of 55 per cent local education authorities will be allowed to go under the new proposals?
§ Mr. ButlerAs my hon. Friend will be aware, the circumstances vary so widely in different parts of the country that I would rather give a considered answer to a particular case.
§ Mr. McEnteeCould the President have prepared a statement dealing with the Part III authorities, so that we may have some indication as to what the extra cost will be under the new Regulations in connection with the White Paper?
§ Mr. ButlerI will consider what the hon. Member has said.
§ Mr. LipsonIs my right hon. Friend aware that unless the Government are prepared to find 100 per cent for new buildings they are unlikely to get those new proposals through in reasonable time?
§ Mr. ButlerI would not like to go into those details at present. Suffice it to say that the whole question of the ability of the authorities to meet the costs of the new proposals has been borne very much in mind.