Academies (Funding)

Richard Fuller Excerpts
Thursday 16th June 2011

(12 years, 11 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Nick Gibb Portrait Mr Gibb
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The Sharon Shoesmith case springs to mind. I will write to the hon. Lady and let her have those figures.

Richard Fuller Portrait Richard Fuller (Bedford) (Con)
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Financial and accounting errors are a serious matter, and it is not surprising that the shadow Secretary of State for Education has raised the issue, given his direct experience of the catastrophic financial and accounting errors under the last Government. Does the Minister not agree that, on a day when this Government have thrown a lifeline to children trapped in underperforming primary schools, it is odd that Labour has once again turned its back on those children?

Nick Gibb Portrait Mr Gibb
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My hon. Friend is right. The Secretary of State has announced that we are taking urgent action to convert the 200 least-performing primary schools in this country to academy status, transforming those schools and giving the youngsters who attend them a significantly better start to their education, and I would have thought that that should be the issue to be raised today.