§ 14. Mr. Lipsonasked the President of the Board of Education for how many school-children is provision not yet made by local education authorities for dinners at school.
§ Mr. EdeThe number of departments of public elementary schools for whose pupils no school meals are available is approximately 11,000 out of 28,000, but a large amount of new provision is under construction. Only a small number of secondary schools are without facilities. I am proposing very shortly to present a return showing the percentage of children taking school meals on a day in February, 194.4.
§ Mr. LipsonMay I ask my hon. Friend how long it will be, at the present rate of progress, before provision is made for all school-children? Will he give, in the OFFICIAL REPORT, a list of the authorities that are not taking action to provide school meals?
§ Mr. EdeI could not give an answer to the first part of that supplementary question without notice. While one authority differs from another as to progress, we are very favourably impressed with the efforts being made by most of the local education authorities to get on with this work.
§ Mr. ThorneMay I ask my hon. Friend whether the Government are prepared to make it obligatory to provide meals for children in schools? I have been advocating this for many years.
§ Mr. EdeMy hon. Friend will have observed that the Education Bill now before Parliament strengthens considerably both our powers and those of the local education authorities.
§ Mr. LipsonHas the fact that 1100 out of 28,000 school-children have not had provision made for them really created a satisfactory impression on the Board?
§ Mr. EdeNo, Sir, but one has to realise that a substantial number of local education authorities are in areas where the children live very near the schools and where—I think, regrettably—there has been no great demand on the part of the parents for school meals.