§ 43. Lieut.-Colonel Hamiltonasked the Minister of Education why West Suffolk was included in the list of local education authorities who had not submitted their development plans to her Department by 31st October, 1946, since this authority had completed their development plans and submitted them before the end of September last.
44. Lieut.-Colonel Clifton-Brownasked the Minister of Education if she has now considered the development plans for West Suffolk which were sent by the local authorities to her Department on 17th October last; and if she will make a further statement on the matter.
§ Mr. HardmanA development plan was submitted by the West Suffolk local education authority on 17th October, 1946, but the authority omitted to include evidence as directed in circular 28, that all the statutory requirements of Section 11 (3) of the Education Act, 1944, had been observed in preparing and submitting the plan. The authority were, therefore, not regarded on 31st October, 1946, as having submitted their plan in accordance with the requirements of the Act. The plan is now under examination in this Department and until that examination is completed I am not in a position to make any statement on the plan.
§ Lieut.-Colonel HamiltonIs the Minister aware that further information was required on only two points and did not necessitate issuing a plan, and under the circumstances does he not consider it some-what unfair on this local authority to state that it had failed to submit a plan?
§ Mr. HardmanThere are certain statutory requirements of which the authority knew, and we could not make an exception for one authority failing to fulfil its statutory requirements.