HC Deb 04 April 1944 vol 398 cc1941-2

Motion made, and Question proposed, "That the Clause stand part of the Bill."

Mr. Edmund Harvey (Combined English Universities)

Can the Minister give us any information on when Part III should come into force?

Mr. Ede

No one is more anxious that Part III should come into operation as soon as possible than I am. That particular part of the Bill represents the achievement of a very considerable purpose in which I have had some personal interest. We must depend upon getting a sufficiency of inspectors. As soon as we have that, we intend to bring that part of the Bill into operation, but may I say that the mere appearance of the White Paper, and the mention of this subject in that White Paper, led to a considerable number of schools asking for inspection, so that the mere shadow of legislation has had a particularly good effect in this case.

Sir P. Harris

I must say that the schools which are anxious for inspection are pro- bably the schools that are thoroughly satisfactory. What we want is that the unsatisfactory schools which exist up and down the country do not escape the eagle eye of the Board of Education—

Mr. Cove

The Board of Education has not an eagle eye.

Sir P. Harris

But it ought to go out from the House that it has the nation behind it and these public schools should have full public control and inspection.

Mr. Ede

I heartily agree, and one of the triumphs of this Bill is that we have managed to get this part through, although Mr. Fisher was defeated in trying to do a similar thing 25 years ago.

Question, "That the Clause stand part of the Bill," put, and agreed to.

Clauses 109 to 111 ordered to stand part of the Bill.