POLITICAL PARTIES UNITED IN OPPOSITION TO SCHOOL CHANGES

4.53.25pm GMT Fri 4th Nov 2005

Political Parties United Re: Future Organisation Of Schools

At a meeting of the County Council's Cabinet Scrutiny Committee today, both Labour and Conservative Members admitted they opposed the views of their Parliamentary Party colleagues on the future organisation of schools.

The recently published Education Bill proposes to make each school independent and responsible for choosing which pupils it admits. Tony Blair has thrown his weight fully behind the change, and Conservative MPs have said they will support it. But representatives of KCC's Labour and Conservative Groups today agreed, in response to Lib Dem Leader, Trudy Dean, that they would oppose the plans. Both agreed to support Trudy's request for a December debate at the next Full Council meeting.

After the meeting Trudy said: "We have a unique situation here where both Labour and Conservative Members are determined to oppose their own Parliamentary colleagues. The Liberal Democrat Party both in Parliament and in local Government has also condemned the proposed bill. KCC is the largest education authority in the country, and if we can unite to oppose the bill it will send a very strong message to Government that they are going the wrong way."

A letter will go to Paul Carter, Conservative Leader of the Council, from Trudy, Mike Eddy, Labour Group Leader, and Chris Capon, Secretary Spokesman for the Conservatives, asking him for a Council Debate on December 15th.