§ 35. Mrs. L. Jegerasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies how many secondary schools in Cyprus now remain 1508 closed by order of the Cyprus Government; and how many children are being deprived of schooling as a result.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydOne secondary school, the Larnaca Lyceum, was closed from November, 1956, until the summer vacation began last month. I have no figures to enable me to give a precise answer to the second part of the Question, but the number is probably not large.
§ Mrs. JegerCould the Minister say whether there is any prospect of this school reopening after the summer holidays? How can it help the maintenance of law and order in Cyprus for any number of these school children to be idle all day? Can he say whether anyone is training teachers, or what happens to their livelihood when schools are closed?
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydThere has been a most spectacular improvement in the education situation in Cyprus compared with last year. If this school is prepared to accept the requirements of discipline and good order, it could be reopened this year. I would remind the hon. Lady and the House that this was a school where the two people who tried most to keep discipline, the secretary of the committee and the senior English master, were brutally murdered. I am not prepared to go beyond the statement of the Governor that certain conditions must be accepted before the school is reopened.