§ Mr. McMasterTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the progress of the new arrangements for the management of further education colleges; and if he will make a statement.
§ Lord James Douglas-HamiltonGood progress is being made in preparing the colleges for incorporation on 1 April 1993. Colleges are responding positively and constructively to this process and we have allocated £2.3 million to assist them. An order was recently made listing the colleges to transfer and setting 1 September 1992 as the beginning of the transitional period. A recurrent funding discussion paper issued in June and a strategy for college management information systems is at an advanced stage. In addition, a wide range of activities, including a seminar programme and the preparation of training materials, is underway.