HC Deb 09 May 1944 vol 399 c1856
Mr. Butler

I beg to move, in page 58, line 34, at the end, to insert: (2) A local education authority shall have power, so far as may be authorised by arrangements approved by the Minister, to make grants to the governors of any aided secondary school for the purpose of helping them to discharge any liability incurred, before the date of the commencement of Part II of this Act, by them or on their behalf or by or on behalf of any former managers or governors of the school or any trustees thereof, for the purposes of establishing or carrying on the school. This is an Amendment to enable a local education authority, if they think fit and the Minister approves, to assist the governors of a secondary school or grammar school type to meet liabilities incurred before the date of the commencement of Part II of the Act. The Amendment is strictly limited in character, and required for a strictly limited purpose to carry on existing practice—for example, to enable the authority to continue to help—I underline those words—to pay off loans, to meet expenditure on the school premises where the authority had previously given that assistance by way of a deficiency grant under the existing law. That, I think, explains the Sub-section which was made necessary by a small omission in the Bill as drafted, and which I think brings it into line with existing practice.

Amendment agreed to.