HC Deb 11 January 1999 vol 323 c95W
Sir Teddy Taylor

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will initiate research into the reasons why school pupils in Northern Ireland achieve better results in GCSEs and A Levels than pupils in England. [64525]

Ms Estelle Morris

The Government have set in place a range of policies designed to raise standards in all schools in England, including the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies, Education Development Plans, measures to tackle school and LEA failure, Education Action Zones and target setting by schools. These approaches are backed by the significant additional resources for schools announced in the Comprehensive Spending Review and are based on a range of evidence about what raises standards drawn from across the UK and internationally. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has no plans for research of the type suggested.