§ Mr. AshdownTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make it his policy to enable schools to plan ahead by fixing their budgets, on a per capita basis, for three years ahead in line with the public expenditure planning periods set out in each Comprehensive Spending Review; and if he will make a statement. [110796]
§ Ms Estelle MorrisUnder the current system of local government finance, it is for local authorities to decide on the distribution of funding between their schools, taking account of local circumstances and priorities. However, the Government has set local authorities a target for 2000–01 of increasing average delegated funding per pupil by at least 6 per cent., or 5 per cent., in authorities which already delegate more than 85 per cent. of their local schools budget.