§ Mrs. Ray MichieTo ask the Secretary of State for the Scotland if he will make a statement on the funding provided to local authorities for the purchase of speech and language therapy for children with a record of needs. [11637]
§ Mr. Raymond S. RobertsonWhere they make provision for a recorded child, education authorities have a statutory duty to ensure adequate provision of speech and language therapy where this has been identified as one of the child's special educational needs. The sum of £3 million is included in the annual local government financial settlement to enable education authorities to discharge this duty by contracting with health boards and other providers of speech and language therapy services.