§ 1. Mr. G. Thomasasked the Minister of Education whether she will now publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT the names of the 81 local education authorities to which she has written concerning the insufficiency of their cuts in estimated expenditure.
§ Mr. ThomasWhile thanking the Minister for that reply, may I ask her whether she is aware that Dr. Alexander, the secretary of the Association of Education Committees of England and Wales, and the National Union of Teachers, have both expressed alarm at this approach which she has made? Will she give the House an assurance that she has now reached rock bottom in her economy attack upon education?
§ Miss HorsbrughPerhaps the hon. Gentleman would like to know that the number of letters which I have written has now gone up from 81 to 94.
§ Mr. EdeInasmuch as 81 is more than half the number of local education committees, may I ask what proportion of the school population is now represented by 94?
§ Miss HorsbrughI could not say the proportion of the school population, but 2404 perhaps, if he had read the letters, or any one of them, the right hon. Gentleman would realise that the letters were not asking the education authorities to make further cuts but for a further explanation about the estimates.
§ Following are the names of the local authorities referred to:
| ENGLAND | |
| Counties | County Boroughs— |
| Bedfordshire | continued |
| Cambridgeshire | Coventry |
| Cheshire | Derby |
| Cumberland | Dewsbury |
| Dorset | Dudley |
| Essex | Eastbourne |
| Gloucestershire | Exeter |
| Hampshire | Gateshead |
| Herefordshire | Gloucester |
| Huntingdonshire | Grimsby |
| Isle of Ely | Halifax |
| Isle of Wight | Hastings |
| Lancashire | Huddersfield |
| Leicestershire | Kingston-on-Hull |
| Norfolk | Leeds |
| Northumberland | Leicester |
| Nottinghamshire | Lincoln |
| Rutland | Liverpool |
| Somerset | Middlesbrough |
| Staffordshire | Newcastle-on-Tyne |
| Suffolk, West | Northampton |
| Sussex, East | Norwich |
| Westmorland | Oldham |
| Wiltshire | Plymouth |
| Worcestershire | Preston |
| Yorks, East Riding | Rochdale |
| Yorks North Riding | Rotherham |
| St. Helens | |
| County Boroughs | Sheffield |
| Barnsley | Smethwick |
| Barrow-in-Furness | Southampton |
| Bath | South Shields |
| Birkenhead | Stoke-on-Trent |
| Birmingham | Sunderland |
| Bolton | Tynemouth |
| Bournemouth | Wallasey |
| Bradford | Walsall |
| Brighton | West Bromwich |
| Burnley | West Ham |
| Bury | West Hartlepool |
| Canterbury | Wigan |
| Carlisle |
| WALES | |
| Counties | Counties—continued |
| Anglesey | Montgomeryshire |
| Breconshire | Pembrokeshire |
| Caernarvonshire | Radnorshire |
| Cardiganshire | |
| Denbighshire | County Boroughs |
| Flintshire | Cardiff |
| Merionethshire | Newport (Mon.) |
| Monmouthshire | Swansea |
§ 19. Mr. Sorensenasked the Minister of Education what modifications have now been made by the Essex County Council in respect of previous decisions on educational economies; whether these have been accepted by her; and what financial expenditure is involved.
§ Miss HorsbrughI understand that the local education authority desire to rescind as from the beginning of the autumn term the measures previously adopted for reducing expenditure on the transport of senior school children. I asked the authority for particulars of their revised proposals, which have now been received and are under consideration. The sum involved would be £29,370 in this financial year.
§ Mr. SorensenDoes not the Minister agree that the previous economies were most deplorable and that it is greatly encouraging that the new council are deciding to try to abolish these economies?
§ Miss HorsbrughAs the hon. Member knows, certain statutory limits are laid down in the Act as to distance and that if a child lives beyond a certain distance transport should be provided. In this case, transport was being provided for children living at a shorter distance.
§ Mr. ShinwellDid I understand the right hon. Lady to say that she was writing to Essex County Council asking for particulars? Does that mean that she proposes to interfere? If so, why does she not interfere in other cases?
§ Miss HorsbrughPerhaps the right hon. Gentleman did not hear me. I said I have written and they have replied to me.
§ Mr. ShinwellWhat was the purpose of writing? What was the intention of the right hon. Lady?
§ Miss HorsbrughTo find out what their proposals were. They have now informed me that it is the transport of the senior school children and that the sum involved is £29,370. I now have that information.
§ Lieut-Colonel LiptonCan the right hon. Lady give an assurance that, in accordance with her regular policy of non-intervention, she did not bring any pressure to bear on Essex County Council to improve their educational services?
§ Miss HorsbrughI asked Essex County Council for this information, which they have now given me, and on 25th June I received a request from them that I should receive a deputation to discuss the matter. [HON. MEMBERS: "Why?"] 2406 I do not know why. Essex County Council gave me the information, but I did not send them any further letter. They have now asked for a deputation to be received. I shall consider that before I send a reply.
§ 25. Mr. Fernyhoughasked the Minister of Education what instructions she proposes to give to the Chester City Education Authority, whose cut in educational expenditure is on a percentage basis the highest in the country and in excess of that asked for in Circular 242.
§ Miss HorsbrughNone, Sir. It was recognised in paragraph 2 of Circular 242 that some authorities might find it practicable, within the policy of the Circular, to make a reduction of more than 5 per cent. on the forecast which they submitted last autumn.
§ Mr. FernyhoughDoes not the right hon. Lady think that at a time of rising prices and increasing costs a cut of this magnitude is bound to undermine the fabric of this essential service? Will she instruct this Tory dominated council to have another look at this matter with a view to safeguarding defenceless children from a selfish attack?
§ Miss HorsbrughI think that before making statements of that sort the hon. Member would be well advised to look at the list of the returns made, which has already been presented to Parliament, because there were other authorities which have not done perhaps quite so much as 7.4 per cent., but some local authorities are well over 6 per cent. I think that if the hon. Member looks at the names of the authorities he will not think his accusation about a particular authority being a Tory authority, and therefore cutting down, is quite accurate.
§ Mr. FernyhoughDoes not the right hon. Lady realise that many citizens and many in the teaching profession in this city are up in arms on this matter and feel she is neglecting her duty in allowing cuts of this magnitude without doing anything about it?
§ Miss HorsbrughI think the hon. Member would be well advised to look at that list. It is quite clear, apart from anything to do with the political views of the various authorities, that the estimates of some were probably not very accurately 2407 prepared. It is difficult to prepare the estimates, and whereas we know a great many authorities when asked to look at their accounts again showed an increase, certain other authorities showed varying degrees of decrease.