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Education and Skills Bill

I was moving on to mention comments made by organisations with which Labour Members will be well familiar. The National Union of Teachers gave guarded support for the Bill, but went on to say:"““The NUT is concerned, however, that the focus in the Bill on sanctions and criminalisation for failing to participate may be counter-productive.””" The Professional Association of Teachers said:"““Raising the school leaving age is a potential minefield that could be disastrous. We could end up with married, voting parents being disciplined or criminalised for not attending school or college.””" I would be grateful for the Secretary of State's response to that. The comment that really struck me came from the right hon. Member for Birkenhead (Mr. Field), who talked of children to whom we are serving a diet of education by which they are deeply bored and quickly failed. That is his indictment of our education system today. If so many children are failing before they reach 16, what is the point of obliging them to stay in education after they are 16? I very much support the thinking behind the Bill, but as far as educational reform is concerned, it is the wrong Bill. The Government are obsessed with the cart when they should be looking at the horse. Let us have the education Bill that we genuinely need; it should address the worrying trends of truancy and increase the desire to learn. Let us have a Bill that promotes education rather than enforces it, and one that inspires learning rather than obligates it.