§ 6. Mr. Malcolm Bruce (Gordon)If he will make a statement on the level of capital consent for school development which he plans to approve for rural north-east Scotland in the years 1999 to 2002. [49919]
§ The Minister for Education and Industry, Scottish Office (Mr. Brian Wilson)My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has just announced, in the comprehensive spending review, additional capital expenditure plans of £185 million for schools over the period 1999 to 2002. The distribution to individual authorities will be considered over the coming months.
§ Mr. BruceMay I take it from that that the Government will be able to give a positive response to applications from Aberdeenshire council for approval for private finance initiative projects and new capital projects for schools in the area—for example, the PFI project involving Garioch academy, linked to Banff primary school, and the new primary school for Kintore? When nearly every secondary school in Aberdeenshire has temporary classrooms, a positive response is required. Will the Minister be able to give such a response in the near future?
§ Mr. WilsonWhat the Minister, and the Government, can do is give a substantial additional amount of cash to Aberdeenshire council and every other local authority over the next few years so that they can make their own decisions within the relevant parameters.
As the hon. Gentleman knows, I visited Ellon academy, and I am aware of the problems there. I am also aware of the £200 million backlog in school maintenance that we inherited all over Scotland. When the allocations are made, that will be one avenue that each authority will be able to pursue in making its own capital investment decisions for education. The other, of course, is the PFI. Aberdeenshire, very properly, has presented proposals for both schools the hon. Gentleman mentioned, which will be considered alongside the other applications for 901 PFI projects that are coming in from all over Scotland. I am well aware of the needs of that part of the hon. Gentleman's constituency, but two avenues are available.
§ Mr. John Swinney (North Tayside)The Minister will know from correspondence that we have exchanged of my concern about the condition of one of the secondary schools in my constituency. I am especially concerned about the condition of Breadalbane academy in Aberfeldy, which could just about be described as the north-east of Scotland. The report carried out on the school's fabric by Her Majesty's inspectorate of schools defined the fabric as good, but, having visited the school, I can assure the Minister that it is far from adequate for the needs of the growing population in the area. What consideration will he be able to give to the specific need to improve the quality of that and other schools in Perth and Kinross, where there is a rapidly expanding school population?
§ Mr. WilsonThe hon. Gentleman will be relieved to learn that Breadalbane academy is situated in middle Scotland rather than north-east Scotland. The problems of the academy have been brought to my attention by the hon. Gentleman, and I can only give him the same answer as I gave the hon. Member for Gordon (Mr. Bruce). However, the sums of money available to education authorities over the next three years, not only through the most recent allocation but through windfall tax money announced last year, are beyond the dreams of what seemed possible a little more than a year ago. Every education authority will now be able to make funding decisions based on the allocations that will be issued shortly. I should think it very likely that the hon. Gentleman's local authority will give high priority to the undoubted needs of Breadalbane academy.