Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effect of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership agreement on (a) academy chains and (b) the ability of US or European companies to establish academy chains in the UK.

The Government remains committed to academies and providing the best quality education for all children and young people. The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) will not change this. The Government of the day will always set the rules governing how the education system is run.

We have protected public services, including education, in all of our trade agreements and will continue to do so in the EU-US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). This is non-negotiable.