HC Deb 10 November 1992 vol 213 cc679-80W
Mrs. Bridget Prentice

To ask the Secretary of State for Education what contribution the United Kingdom is making to the UNESCO-co-ordinated initiative, "Education for All"; and what work his Department is doing towards achieving the objective of basic education for every child and adult around the world.

Mr. Forman

The Government support the objective of ensuring universal access to basic education. In the United Kingdom education is compulsory for all children of school age. The Government also recognise the importance of basic education for adults. Under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, the further education funding councils will be under a duty to secure the provision of adequate facilities for literacy and numeracy teaching for adults.

The Goverment will also continue to promote education in developing countries in collaboration with other aid donors, including UNESCO, UNICEF and the World bank. The Overseas Development Administration aims to identify new projects which will improve the quality, availability and relevance of education in developing countries, with particular reference to promoting literacy for women.