Last Updated: Wednesday, 8 March 2006, 18:09 GMT
Education & Inspections Bill
The bill requires local authorities to promote choice, diversity and high standards, to respond to parents unsatisfied with their local schools and to identify children missing from education
Enables every school to become a foundation school, acquire a foundation and allow that foundation to appoint a majority of governors
Such schools must establish a parents' council to reflect their views
Reaffirms the existing ban on selection by ability and proposes a ban on interviewing
Empowers local authorities to intervene quickly and effectively with regard to failing schools
Local authorities will be obliged to offer free school transport to help the poorest families
Enables nutritional standards to be applied to all food and drink supplied on school premises
Empowers all staff to discipline pupils for bad behaviour, even when they are not in school
Parents are to be held responsible for excluded pupils
Extends the scope of parenting orders and contracts
Responsible department: Education & Skills
Origin: House of Commons
Introduced: 28 Feb 2006
Second reading: 15 March 2006
Committee stage: 20 & 23 March, 25 & 27 April 2006, 2,9 & 11 May 2006
Report stage: 23 & 24 May 2006
First reading: 25 May 2006
Second reading: 21 June 2006
Committee stage: 5, 12, 18, 20 & 25 July 2006
Report stage: 17, 19, 20 & 24 October 2006
Third reading: 31 October 2006
ROYAL ASSENT: 8 November 2006
15 March 2006
Commons Second reading
Second reading vote
Ayes: 458, Noes: 115
Ayes: 300, Noes: 290
24 May 2006 Govt amendment on new community schools
Ballot of parents on change to foundation schools
Conservative amendment to increase difficulty of setting up community schools
banning new community schools
Rebel amendment limiting secretary of state's veto
Rebel amendment on vetting potential sponsors of foundation schools
Report stage votes in the following order:-
Tony Blair's proposals to hand greater autonomy over to state schools have divided the Labour party. At second reading, 52 labour MPs rebelled and a further 25 abstained leaving ministers to rely on support from opposition benches.
In order to appease Labour rebels who fear the creation of a two-tier system, the government has amended plans for all schools to be self-governing; local authorities could now open new 'community schools'.
The main opposition to the bill has been organised by a group which has produced an 'Alternative White Paper'.
Key members include John Denham, Nick Raynsford and Baroness Estelle Morris and they stress they are for the main thrust of the bill and are not left-wing trouble-makers.
Despite concern that the prime minister's reforms have now been watered down too much, the Conservatives are still under a three-line whip to support the bill.
But they have tabled amendments to attempt to return the bill to its original, pre-concession form.
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