HC Deb 28 February 1989 vol 148 c149
8. Mr. Devlin

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what recent correspondence he has received on the state of education in Cleveland.

Mr. Butcher

During November last year my right hon. Friend received three very helpful letters from my hon. Friend about a range of issues arising during his visits to schools in his constituency.

Mr. Devlin

Does not the lack of other correspondence from the people of Cleveland show that the overwhelming majority are very happy with the new arrangements for higher standards in the national curriculum? Testing arrangements, the new city technology colleges and the changing status of our polytechnic will all receive a general welcome throughout the county, contrary to the allegations of the local Labour party.

Mr. Butcher

My hon. Friend has made a gracious commendation of the delivery of excellence in education by the schools in Cleveland. Cleveland is No. 8 in terms of academic results from school leavers, and is the 34th highest spender. That goes against the usual pattern of Labour-controlled LEAs, which combine high spending with low academic achievement. I am also grateful to my hon. Friend for his comprehensive reports from a large school visits programme, and I assure him that we respond as positively as we can to the information that he sends in.

Mr. Bell

The people of Cleveland will welcome the Minister's statement on the high standards that we have obtained in the county. He ought to add his congratulations to the local Labour-controlled authority which has brought that about.

Can the Minister tell us why more was spent on the CTC than on the 200 schools in the county of Cleveland? Would it not have been more appropriate to put the same amount into those schools as into the CTC?

Mr. Butcher

No. [HON. MEMBERS: "Why not?"] If I have interpreted the hon. Gentleman's past comments correctly, I think that he and I share an interest in maximising inner city children's chances of improved opportunities in the labour market, and indeed elsewhere. If that is the case, I hope that he will accept that the new initiative will be of immense benefit to Cleveland.

This is new money, and I suspect that the Labour party will find itself in a major dilemma. In the early days its members opposed council house sales, and that rebounded on them. They will find that, for social reasons, their opposition to CTCs will do the same.