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Education and Skills Bill

I have only a brief word to add. I have been around in education for a long time. While five years seems like a long time, it is not in education terms. I entirely support what the Liberal Democrat spokesman and my noble friend said. It would be common sense to allow the current 11 year-olds to run through with all the innovations that the Government have introduced, many of which we wholeheartedly support, and see what happens at the end of that process, before attempting to implement anything new for those who come along two years later. Seven years is still quite a short time in educational terms. The nine year-olds who are currently in primary school will surprisingly quickly reach the age of 16; they will go through all the innovations and it may be that the harsher, punitive, provisions of the Bill will simply be unnecessary.