§ 12. Richard Ottaway (Croydon, South) (Con)If he will make a statement on the funding of nursery education. [176001]
§ The Minister for Children (Margaret Hodge)In 1997 access to free nursery education was effectively a postcode lottery. Since then we have invested more than £11 billion as part of an unprecedented expansion of early years provision. From 1 April 2004, six months ahead of the original target, we amended the regulatory framework to require all local authorities to ensure that there is sufficient provision to deliver a free part-time nursery education place for all three and four-year-olds whose parents want one.
§ Richard OttawayMay I suggest that the Minister visit Croydon. where that is not the case? Is she aware of the shambles it the funding of nursery education in Croydon, where the Labour-controlled council has embarked upon a discriminatory and illegal policy to deal with it? Is she aware that owing to a lack of funding, the council is not fulfilling the pledge that she set out? The council is choosing schools that are in Labour-controlled wards to receive nursery education funding, and ignoring the rest of the borough. Does she agree that that is abuse of power and contrary to the advice of officers, and will she use her statutory powers to intervene in what is nothing more than political corruption?
§ Margaret HodgeAs the hon. Gentleman knows, I am aware of the situation in Croydon because he has written to me about it two or three times and I have responded. As he also knows from the correspondence in which he and I have been engaged, we are working closely with that authority to find a solution. It may be worth pointing out to the House that there are two authorities out of the 150 local education authorities that are having some difficulty in implementing their statutory requirements. One is Croydon; the other is Tory-controlled Richmond.