§ Mr. WorthingtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is his policy in respect of the level of costs of educational administration in Northern Ireland; and what assessment he has made of the level of these costs relative to those elsewhere in the United Kingdom. [2031]
§ Mr. AncramThe Government believe that the costs of educational administration in Northern Ireland should be reduced through annual efficiency savings, through the682W restructuring of the education and library boards—which I announced earlier this year—and through the development, where practicable, of regionalised services.
The different local government structures in the United Kingdom do not permit direct comparisons with the costs of educational administration elsewhere.