Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland Executive on supporting schools in areas of high deprivation.

Whilst recognising that education is a devolved matter, the UK Government will continue to work collaboratively with the Northern Ireland Executive. Although new in post, the ministerial team look forward to meeting regularly with Executive colleagues and discussing how we can best work together on reducing gaps in attainment and tackling deprivation.