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Schools Funding (Cornwall)

I am sure that the Minister has the same experience as me—there is no Member of Parliament who does not believe that their constituency is unfairly disadvantaged in comparison to others. There was a similar issue regarding health, and there we have seen a change which, over time, significantly increases the funding. I reiterate for the Minister that when the Government were elected, the funding formula disadvantaged rural, impoverished communities such as ours, meaning that we got 95 per cent. of the national average per pupil. As the Minister said, funding has gone up, but we now have only 92 per cent. of the national average. There is a clear bias in the system, but with health—and more generally—the Government have recognised that ours is an impoverished community and, I am afraid, the nearest equivalent to inner-urban poverty in a rural setting.