Oral Answers to Questions
Richard Tice Excerpts(3 weeks, 3 days ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Catherine McKinnell
The Government are working closely with local authorities to ensure that consideration is given to all options for utilising space, whether that is for early years provision or SEND provision, including merging provision where that is in the best interests of the community, and we will continue to do so. I or the early years Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth South (Stephen Morgan), would be happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss the proposals.
Richard Tice (Boston and Skegness) (Reform)
Will the Secretary of State confirm how many SEND children are forecast to have to leave the independent sector and go into the state sector because of the imposition of VAT on fees? What will be the cost of that to the taxpayer?
Bridget Phillipson
Labour’s plans to end the tax breaks that private schools enjoy will invest significant money into state education. I am really surprised that the hon. Gentleman does not welcome the extra investment that will be going into schools in his constituency. When it comes to children with SEND, where the place is derived through an EHCP, there will be no additional cost. As I said earlier, the scaremongering that people like him have engaged in is just proving to be wrong.
Immigration and Nationality Statistics
Richard Tice Excerpts(3 months, 2 weeks ago)
Westminster HallRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
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Richard Tice (Boston and Skegness) (Reform)
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Mundell. I congratulate the hon. Member for West Suffolk (Nick Timothy) on securing this debate. It seems to me that there is a dearth of information, or a sort of conspiracy of silence. It seems quite simple; we have been told for decades that immigration is great for this nation, and therefore it seems quite obvious that we should say, “Fine, prove it.” Why do we not suggest proving it nation by nation, so that we know who is genuinely contributing and adding value, or who is maybe costing us money? We can then work out how we improve growth and ensure that smart immigration works for this country.
A Government who believe in transparency and high-quality data, which we have heard to be the case on numerous occasions, should welcome the opportunity and the suggestion that we need to know, nation by nation, who is coming here, how much they are contributing, and how much they are costing. In the unfortunate example where they commit crimes, we need to know—nation by nation—who is costing us by way of criminals and why they are not immediately removed. With that quality of data, we can make judgments and decisions about smart immigration to the benefit of all, and to the confidence of all our constituents.
Oral Answers to Questions
Richard Tice Excerpts(4 months, 4 weeks ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Catherine McKinnell
Absolutely. We are committed to working with families to deliver an improved SEND system that works for all. We ensure that families have access to free and impartial information, advice and support to enable them to participate as fully as possible in the decisions that affect them, but I would welcome suggestions from my hon. Friend and parents in south Birmingham on how to improve the system.
Richard Tice (Boston and Skegness) (Reform)
The Minister has just agreed that there is a crisis of capacity for SEND provision in the state sector, yet the Government’s deeply misguided VAT policy on school fees is exaggerating this crisis and the crisis of EHCP assessments. Surely the right thing to do is grant a VAT exemption on SEND children to ease the crisis.
Catherine McKinnell
We are committed to ensuring that pupils whose needs necessitate a place at private school are not impacted by this policy. Where a pupil’s place in private school is funded by a local authority in England, Scotland and Wales because the pupil’s needs cannot be met in the state sector, the local authority will be able to reclaim the VAT it is charged on fees.