§ Mr. DrewTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on the availability of exam markers for next summer's public examinations. [147861]
§ Mr. Wicks[holding answer 30 January 2001]: All necessary steps are being taken to ensure a sufficient supply of examiners. The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority is monitoring the awarding bodies closely to ensure that the system will deliver I his summer's results on time. The awarding bodies' examiner recruitment exercise is well under way. The exact number of examiners needed will not be known until April, when entries have been made.