§ Mr. Formanasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he has withheld publication of the report on the National Children's Bureau study on educational progress of children in selective and non-selective schools; and when he expects it to be published.
§ Mr. Mark CarlisleThere is no truth whatsoever in the suggestion that I have withheld publication of this report by the National Children's Bureau. This research was carried out by the NCB and it is for it to publish the report. A draft of the report was sent to me last August, but in fact I have not yet seen a copy of the final version. In a letter last December to Professor Halsey, who led the research team, I said that I looked forward to studying a copy of the final report and that I hoped it would be widely read as a valuable contribution to the education debate. My understanding at that time was that the NCB hoped to publish the report as soon as possible. I agreed in January to increase its research budget by £1,200 to allow this. I understand from the NCB that it is expecting to publish the report in June or July.