§ 69. Mrs. Dunwoodyasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what estimate she has made of the numbers and nationalities of migrant children in the United Kingdom who will be entitled to be taught in the language of their mother tongue after 1981; and what will be the approximate cost to the education authorities.
§ Mr. OakesInformation about the nationalities or ethnic origins of pupils has not been included in the annual collection of educational statistics since 1972, and no reliable estimate can be made of future numbers of migrant pupils in this country. Such pupils do not have an automatic entitlement to be taught in their mother tongue, though an EEC directive on the education of children of migrant workers upholds the promotion of the teaching of mother tongue and culture. I do not envisage any significant increase in local authority expenditure arising from that directive.