§ 89. Mr. McKayasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Education whether he has finished his investigations into the question of the fees charged by the Northumberland County Committee to parents of children who have not secured any of the limited number of free places in the direct grant schools but, having secured scholarships in the county secondary grammar schools, choose to attend at a denominational direct grant school on religious grounds: and if he will make a statement.
§ Sir E. BoyleNot yet.
§ 90. Mr. McKayasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of. Education in his investigations into the fees 254W charged to parents of children who choose to send their scholarship children to direct grant schools on religious grounds, what estimate he has made of the extra cost in Northumberland to the County and to his Department, respectively, if all such scholarship children were given free places in the direct grant schools.
§ Sir E. BoyleAbout £1,500 in the first year, of which rather more than half would fall on the local education authority and the rest on my Department. The total would rise to about £7,500 in the fifth and subsequent years.
§ 91. Mr. McKayasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Education what decision he has reached in regard to reducing the fees charged to parents of county scholarship children where they choose to send such children to direct grant schools on religious grounds, in view of the fact that these fees have remained unaltered since 1945, and cause increased hardship even where the income has increased in proportion to the increased cost of living.
§ Sir E. BoyleMy noble Friend does not contemplate making any change in this matter.