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Further Education

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to encourage more children to continue their education in (a) sixth form and (b) further education colleges. [12404]

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Mr. Ivan Lewis: We have set out our vision for post-16 learning in the recent White Paper, "Schools: Achieving Success". We want all young people to continue after the age of 16 in high quality learning opportunities which best meet their needs and potential. This may be in school, college or in the work-based route. We have established the Learning and Skills Council to

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drive this forward and have put in place a number of measures which provide the support and incentives young people need to take up and succeed in learning. We are introducing the new Connexions service to provide advice and guidance to young people on the full range of learning options open to them and to help them progress within their chosen learning environment. We are also addressing the financial barriers to participation through piloting the education maintenance allowance scheme; providing discretionary funding targeted at specific learner needs, and the Connexions card, which offered discounts on transport and learning materials.

Violent and Disruptive Pupils

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will introduce legislation to deal with pupils who are violent and disruptive in the classroom and who threaten (a) teachers and (b) other classmates. [12582]

Mr. Timms: We will not tolerate violent or abusive behaviour towards teachers or pupils. Parenting orders may already be sought in cases where pupils have committed a criminal act. Our recent "Schools: Achieving Success" White Paper highlights our plans to extend the use of parenting orders so that they can be activated following violence or persistent misbehaviour by pupils at school. Parenting orders provide guidance to parents in managing challenging behaviour and their wider use would encourage parents to take more responsibility for behaviour in school.

We have also made it clear to schools that if a pupil is violent to classmates or persistently bullies them, or if they are violent or threaten violence to teachers, head teachers have the legal power to exclude that pupil permanently. While recognising that permanent exclusion is a serious matter, we plan to require in legislation that exclusion appeal panels balance the excluded pupil's interests against those of all other members of the school community.

School Grounds (Sussex)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which school grounds in Sussex have been sold since May 1997. [12596]

Mr. Timms: No data were collected centrally on how many school grounds were sold before October 1998. Section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 was introduced in October 1998 to stop the indiscriminate sale of school playing fields. Before October 1998, there was nothing to prevent a local authority selling school playing fields if it wanted to. As local authorities and governing bodies of all maintained schools are now required to obtain the Secretary of State's consent before disposing of playing fields or any part of a playing field, which can be said to comprise school grounds, we have collected information about the sale of school playing fields since October 1998. For the purposes of answering the question I have, therefore, equated school grounds to school playing fields.

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Since 1 October 1998, the Secretary of State has approved the sale of various areas of school grounds that fall within the definition of school playing fields under the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 at the following schools in West Sussex and East Sussex:

Beacon Community College, Crowborough;


Barnham Primary School, Bognor Regis; Chichester High School for Girls, Chichester;

Lindfield Junior School, Haywards Heath ¹ ;

The Forest School, Horsham;


Hazelwick School, Crawley;


Catherington Special School, Crawley, and


Deerswood Special School, Crawley.


¹ School closed 31 August 2000

Student Support

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will publish the evidence that informed her judgment relating to the impact on the Government's target for 18 to 30-year-olds in higher education of the current system of student support. [11580]

Margaret Hodge [holding answer 31 October 2001]: Last month my right hon. Friend announced the review of student support which, in seeking to get the right balance between the contributions made by the state, the parent and the graduate, has the explicit aim of ensuring that we reach our target of 50 per cent. of 18 to 30-year-olds having the opportunity to participate in higher education. In particular, the review will consider, in relation to the current system of student support, concerns expressed about the impact of debt, or perceptions of future debt, which have been identified in the 1998–99 student income and expenditure report, the DfES research report, "Social Class and Higher Education: Issues Affecting Decisions on Participation by Lower Social Class Groups" (2001), and elsewhere. We want to ensure opportunities for all and are reviewing student funding to remove obstacles that might deter potential students from low-income families participating in higher education.

CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT

Leisure Services (Lee Valley)

10. Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on leisure services operated by the Lee Valley Authority. [10029]

Tessa Jowell: The Lee Valley Regional Park Authority is a statutory authority funded from a levy on all 32 London boroughs, Thurrock borough council and Hertfordshire and Essex county councils.

The Park Authority has a specific remit to regenerate the 12,500 acres of the Lee Valley as a regional park and to provide high quality regional sports and leisure facilities. The Park Authority is in the process of developing its facilities in accordance with its 10-year business plan published in 2000.

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Sport (Centres of Excellence)

11. Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on regional centres of excellence for sports. [10030]

Mr. Caborn: The Government remain committed to the development of the United Kingdom Sports Institute (UKSI) and good progress is being made in its establishment. Centres in Scotland and Wales are now operational; the English Institute is developing apace and it is hoped that work on the Northern Ireland Institute will begin soon. It is vital now that all those agencies with an interest in elite sport work together collectively to assist athletes achieve their ultimate goal.

Ofcom

12. Mr. Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on her plans for representation for Wales on the proposed Ofcom. [10031]

Dr. Howells: The draft Communications Bill to be published in spring 2002 will contain details of how the interests of Wales will be represented within Ofcom.

Foot and Mouth

13. Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the effects of foot and mouth disease on the hotel industry. [10032]

Tessa Jowell: The Department's best estimate is that revenue loss to the English tourism industry overall is likely to be around £3.3 billion in "value added" terms. The effects of FMD on the tourism industry, including the hotel sector, have been uneven, some areas have done well, others have been hit disproportionately hard. The Government introduced a package of recovery assistance for rural businesses, including tourism businesses, affected by the consequent implications of foot and mouth disease. In total, these measures will bring benefits to businesses of over £300 million.

32. Mr. Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the effects of foot and mouth disease on the tourism industry in England. [10053]

Dr. Howells: The Department's best estimate is that the revenue loss to the English tourism industry for March to October is likely to be around £3.3 billion in "value added" terms.

An additional £3.8 million was provided to the English Tourism Council in April for immediate recovery work. The British Tourist Authority has received an additional £14.2 million for marketing and promotion. The Regional Development Agency business recovery fund, established in April, is designed to provide targeted help for rural businesses, including tourism businesses, affected by the consequent implications of foot and mouth disease. On 18 October, the Government allocated a further £24 million to the fund taking the total to £74 million. The fund is one element in a package of recovery assistance for tourism that includes business rate relief and deferral of tax payments. These measures and existing programmes will help to encourage tourism.

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