§ Mr. Clemitsonasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what action has been taken following the Price Commission report on prescribed school clothing.
§ Mr. MaclennanAs my right hon. Friend indicated in his reply of 28th July, the Commission found that prices of school clothing had generally not increased by more than the increase in the retail price index for clothing over the past three years. It concluded that school-wear was no more profitable to 379W retailers and manufacturers than other children's wear, and that this was true for retailers who were nominated by a particular school as well as for those who were not nominated. The bill for school clothing therefore depended largely on the amount and nature of the articles of clothing which were prescribed; and the only way to alleviate the burden of expenditure was to reduce the number of articles prescribed, or to rely more on the standard articles, or by a combination of both.
Many of the responsibilities associated with school clothing rest with the local authorities and with the schools themselves. With the agreement of my right hon. Friends the Secretary of State for Education and Science, the Secretary of State for Scotland, the Secretary of State for Wales and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, I am arranging for copies of the report to be circulated to all appropriate education authorities in the United Kingdom, as well as to certain other educational bodies. The report is relevant both to the private and to the public sector of education, and I would urge both sectors to take it into account in planning future requirements for school uniforms.—[Vol. 936, Part III, c. 742–3.]