§ Lord O'Haganasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will make a statement about the varying nature of the attitude of local education authorities to British citizens working in the European Communities.
§ The Earl of SwintonI assume the noble Lord is referring to the provision of mandatory awards for children of British citizens working in the European Communities.
Eligibility for such awards is governed by the Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations. These state, inter alia, that in order to be eligible for an award a person must have been ordinarily resident, throughout the three years preceding the first year of his course, in the British islands. However, a person shall be treated as being ordinarily resident if the local education authority considering his application for an award are satisfied that he is not, or has not been, so resident at the relevant time only because he, his spouse or his parent is, or was, temporarily employed outside the British islands.
Her Majesty's Government are aware that the term "temporarily employed" may be interpreted differently between local education authorities and are considering ways of minimising the effects of this.