Speeches by Phillipson.

“There are 60,000 fewer children in primary schools this year. I know the right hon. Lady was at the Treasury, so I would expect a bit more when it comes to her maths. It would be nonsensical to recruit even more primary school teachers when we have falling rolls. We are focusing our efforts where they are needed, and I…”

“This Labour Government are delivering the teachers that are desperately needed right across our schools. We were left behind a terrible crisis when it came to recruitment and retention, but this Labour Government know that improving standards in our schools requires having the best possible teachers available to teach …”

“Like the hon. Gentleman, I welcome the hard work of our teachers, leaders and support staff, and I am always pleased to hear about improvements in standards. This Government are ambitious for every child, and our new regional improvement in standards and excellence teams are working across schools to bring together lea…”

“With your permission, Mr Speaker, I would like first to address last week’s tragic incident in Minehead. I am sure that all Members will join me in offering support and prayers to everyone affected by the Minehead middle school bus crash last Thursday. Our deepest sympathies and condolences go to all those affected at …”

“My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the amazing work in the specialist sector and the tremendous expertise, knowledge and passion that so many people bring to supporting children with some of the most complex needs. That is why how we can deliver better outcomes for children with SEND is at the forefront of al…”

“I will happily write to the right hon. Gentleman in relation to his constituency case. We are looking carefully at all the proposals we inherited when we came in as a new Government, but the assurance I can give him is that through the spending review we secured additional investment not just for revenue funding but al…”

“As I said in response to the hon. Member for North Herefordshire (Ellie Chowns), children with SEND have a legal right to additional support. We will not just protect it, but improve it. We will deliver better outcomes and support for children with SEND. I do not know how the shadow Minister has the brass neck to stand…”

“I give my hon. Friend that assurance and thank him for all the work he does for schools right across his constituency. Recruiting and retaining more teachers—particularly in the most disadvantaged areas—is critical to our opportunity mission, but I am also delighted that initial teacher training acceptances are up 12% …”

“With the summer holidays just around the corner, I want to say a huge thank you to everyone working across education for all their hard work this year. Improving the quality of teaching is the best way to drive up school standards, supporting every child to achieve and thrive. Through our plan for change, we will recru…”

“We continue to keep all these areas under review; if the hon. Gentleman would like to write to me with more information, I would be happy to respond with more detail. However, I am clear that this Government are investing more in education. We are turning around the year-on-year declines in teacher numbers with better …”

“We are investing record sums in our state schools. The Conservative party, however, wants to take money out of our state schools to give tax breaks back to private schools. That tells us everything we need to know about their priorities.”

“That was very shouty from the shadow Minister, and as per usual very negative about what we are seeing across education. We are turning around the problems that the Conservatives left behind on teacher recruitment and retention. We are increasing attendance in our schools and improving behaviour—a challenge that I comp…”

“I am grateful to my hon. Friend; I know he cares deeply about outcomes for children in Chatham and Aylesford, and that he brings real experience to this House. He is right to demonstrate the important role of the specialist sector. He mentions Bradfields academy, which has already secured a place on the schools rebuild…”

“I can be clear that children with SEND have a legal right to additional support, and Labour will always protect that. I would say, however, that we all have a responsibility in how we approach the issue—a responsibility not to cause undue alarm among parents who are experiencing a system that is not working and that is…”

“My hon. Friend is a powerful champion for his constituents and for Blackpool, and he is right that far too many children are not currently getting the support they need in order to thrive. Early intervention is key—more support at the earliest possible point to identify where children might be struggling, and to make s…”

“If the hon. Gentleman would write to me, I will look into that further.”

“I am grateful to my hon. Friend that important question. Labour is providing £1 billion more for high-needs budgets, and also providing councils with £740 million of capital funding to improve support for children with SEND in specialist and mainstream schools. This investment will lay the foundation for the better sys…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for her question and for all her work to support neurodiverse students in Broxtowe and beyond. From September, thanks to this Labour Government’s reforms, all new teachers will receive three years of evidence-based training, including significantly enhanced content on supporting children with add…”

“I can confirm to my hon. Friend that his local authority will benefit from the extra funding. The area is one of those not currently funded, but it will be receiving funding shortly—this year—to start the process of moving towards a Best Start family hub in the next year. We will be clear with local authorities that we…”

“It is hard to top my hon. Friend’s question and I will not begin to try to make further ’90s references. What I can say to her is that we are drawing on the best of Sure Start, learning from the evidence about what was incredibly effective. One other element I would add to her list is that Sure Start was at its best wh…”