§ 10. Sir David KnoxTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much was spent per pupil in secondary schools in Wales in the most recent year for which figures are available; and what this figure was for 1978–79 at constant prices. [287]
§ Mr. Jonathan EvansThe provisional figure for net funding per pupil in local education authority maintained secondary schools in Wales for 1994–95 was £2,264 at constant 1994–95 prices. The equivalent figure for 904 1979–80, the earliest year for which comparable information is centrally available, is £1,474 per pupil at constant 1994–95 prices.
§ Sir David KnoxDoes my hon. Friend agree that those figures hardly sustain claims of cuts in education? Does he think that that increase in funding has been accompanied by a comparable increase in standards?
§ Mr. EvansI can certainly tell my hon. Friend that one clear focus of Government policy on education in Wales has been to ensure that we drive up standards. The latest general certificate of secondary education and A-level results in Wales show that we are making significant progress. The figures also reveal not only an increase of 53.6 per cent. in real terms in spending per secondary school pupil in Wales, but an increase of 48 per cent. in spending on primary school children. As my hon. Friend has made absolutely clear, that fact must be judged against the charges that we sometimes hear from the Opposition.
§ Mr. Barry JonesWill the Minister help Flintshire local education authority by enabling it to opt out of the unpopular nursery voucher scheme? In that way, he could assist secondary education, because everyone in Flintshire believes that the voucher scheme will be wasteful, chaotic and rather expensive.
§ Mr. EvansNot for the first time, we hear from the Opposition that they speak for every person in Wales. In fact, they have discovered at previous national elections that their optimism in that respect was misplaced, as it will be again.