Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill

Debate between David Ward and Nigel Evans

Wednesday 2nd November 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Nigel Evans)]

Order. The hon. Gentleman is using the word “you”, but as he knows, that refers to me. Could he please refrain from using that word?

[Mr Ward]

I apologise, Mr Deputy Speaker.

Someone once told me that the world is divided into two groups of people. There are those who, when they see somebody walking down the street with a walking stick, believe in kicking the stick away because it will make that person stronger, and there are those who believe that if they kick away the stick, the person will just fall over. We are in grave danger of making some of those who are, by definition, the most vulnerable in our society fall over, and we will still have to be there to pick them up, at even greater cost to the public purse. It does not make sense; we should not do it.

Academies Bill [Lords]

Debate between David Ward and Nigel Evans

Thursday 22nd July 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Ward]

I must say this is a fantastic debate. I was not sure of the right time to introduce this point, but it is not always the case that, if a school has its own budget, it will do the best thing by the children. The best example is probably the provision of education social work. It might seem that the school is the client of the education social worker, but of course it is not—the child is the client. Very often, if a school is offered the money, it will buy in its own education social worker, who will be a door knocker for getting those kids into the school. Once a child is on the roll and the school is getting the funding, some schools will say, “Actually, we’re not too bothered if that person doesn’t turn up today.” Believe me, it is true! It happens—because, in many cases, schools are forced into doing it. But the child is the client, and if the best place for the child is in school, the education social worker will try to facilitate that to the best of their ability. However, if that education social worker is employed by the school, sometimes the school will let the child in, but sometimes it will not be too bothered. I have known young children who have been out of school for two years—

[The First Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means (Mr Nigel Evans)]

Order. Interventions, by their very nature, should be short.