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State Schools (Independence)

I am sure that the hon. Member for Bristol, East (Kerry McCarthy) accepts that a lot of disguised selection goes on at the moment. All those of us who deal with the education system know that. For instance, I know comprehensives in London that will do anything they can to avoid taking in children with statements. A lot of cheating goes on in relation to SATs—standard assessment tests—league tables and all the rest of it. It would be wrong to think that at the moment we have a comprehensive system that is as pure as the driven snow and works. Well, let us deal with whether it does work. That is the crucial question. Are we providing the education system that we should be, given all the investment that has been put in? I give credit to the Government because they have increased investment in education, but are they satisfied that every extra pound of taxpayers’ money that they are spending is producing results? Is the Minister satisfied with the level of education available to our children? Is he worried about the National Audit Office report showing that 1 million of our children are in failing or coasting schools? If he is satisfied with the present system, why is he supporting the Education and Inspections Bill? Why is there so much controversy over these issues in his own party? Why does he believe that there must be more diversity? He will probably say that the debate just shows that he is right. There are people to the left and to the right of him, the cannons are thundering and he is going down the third way, the middle route—all the stuff we hear from new Labour Ministers—but they, who are now in charge, must be very worried about that. My final point relates to the most controversial part of what my hon. Friend the Member for Harwich said and what some of us in my party are trying to convince those on our Front Bench of, in the truly democratic and open party that we have. We strongly believe, as my hon. Friend said, that parents should have a right to opt out of the state system if they want to and that they should be allowed to take the cost of state education, which they have contributed to all their lives as taxpayers, out of the state system and into the private system. That is happening increasingly around the world and is very popular, particularly with marginalised people. Black people in ghetto areas in large United States cities like the voucher: it allows them to escape from the ghetto. It could be called a voucher or an education credit. I find one particular description rather attractive and I believe that the idea could be made quite popular. I am talking about a parent saying, ““I have a right to this money. This is my right for my child. I can take this £6,000 where I want. I can leave it in existing state schools or take it to new schools.”” That would be good for the private sector, which is too cosy at the moment. Independent schools might not email one another any more because they are worried about being reported to the Office of Fair Trading, but we all know that it is an extraordinary coincidence that they all seem to charge the same fees. However, many other people are entering the independent sector, and surely it is a new Labour idea to encourage choice, diversity and new entrants into the private sector, because new Labour is not against the private sector, is it?