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Further Education and Training Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 7: 7: Clause 2, page 2, line 5, at end insert ““such that each council has between 12 and 20 members which must include— (i) at least one governor and one principal representing further education colleges and one head teacher of a secondary school situated within the area of the regional learning and skills council; and (ii) representation from amongst elected members of those local education authorities falling within the area of the regional learning and skills council.”” The noble Baroness said: I shall also speak to Amendment No. 8, which is in this group. Amendment No. 7 relates to the membership of regional councils. We want to ensure that all regional councils include representatives of learning providers by including a governor and a principal of a college and a secondary head to represent the interests of future learners, who, as we see in Clause 7, have to be consulted. In the light of the abolition of the 148 local LSC officers, it is particularly important to ensure that power and responsibility are given—alongside employers and others—to representatives of those who lead the institutions where the learning takes place and to local authorities. Current best practice involves having such people on local LSC councils, so they have already demonstrated that they have an important contribution to make. I hope that the Government will agree that, with the current re-organisation, there is a need to give statutory force to that best practice. It is also important to keep a strong link with local authorities in the areas covered and to have them properly represented. Therefore, we would like to see at least one elected representative on each council. Amendment No. 8 removes the right of the Secretary of State or his representative to attend the meetings of regional councils. We see no need for that provision. The Secretary of State has plenty of opportunities to oversee the activities of councils under other provisions, and it smacks of micromanagement and centralisation to give the Secretary of State or his representative the right to attend every little meeting of the regional council. I beg to move.