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Special Educational Needs (Information) Bill

I welcome the opportunity to speak to the new clause and amendments, including amendments Nos. 2 and 3, which are tabled in my name and those of my hon. Friends. Before I speak to the amendments, I must congratulate the hon. Member for Gateshead, East and Washington, West (Mrs. Hodgson) on her skilful trafficking of the Bill through the House. To people outside, it might look like a simple Bill that should not take much time or effort to get through our procedures, but I know from my discussions with her that she and her researcher have spent a great deal of time and effort on it. I congratulate her and her staff on the excellent job that she has been doing. I hope that today's debate helps to clarify the two main provisions in the Bill, which are about securing information about children with special educational needs to help to ensure that they are well supported and active and achieve their real potential, and about ensuring that the information is published. It is a pleasure to follow my hon. Friend the Member for Christchurch (Mr. Chope), who has particular knowledge of how these issues work practically, on the ground, in local authority areas. His contribution to the debate has really demonstrated that. He highlighted the lack of training for teachers in the classroom, and I shall build on those points when I speak to amendment No. 2. His comment about rhetoric versus reality, in relation to the Government, was well made. All too often, we hear a lot of announcements when we discuss special educational needs, but when we talk to our constituents, we find that practical changes in our classrooms can be more limited.