§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what action he is taking to implement a child care strategy; and what is the timetable for that strategy. [14570]
§ Mr. Alan HowarthWe have already taken action to improve child care by extending the child care disregard and offering young people the opportunity to obtain training and work experience in child care as part of the New Deal programme. We are currently developing a National Child care Strategy which will help parents, especially women, to balance family and working life and I will make an announcement in the first part of next year.