Speeches by Perteghella.

“You have mentioned children with special needs and disabilities and children who have been bullied in the mainstream school system. Are there are other groups of children who benefit from the flexibility of a home-based environment?”

“Bev and Thomas, how will the Bill’s provisions on admissions translate into real change on the ground? Will they lead to less appeals or direction and advice cases, or more?”

“We have already heard from you about the transformative impact of auto-enrolment for free school meals and extending eligibility, but I want to go into a bit more detail. The Bill does not make provision for any changes to the system of free school meals for eligible children. What difference would auto-enrolment for f…”

“Will the provisions in the Bill inhibit academies’ ability to innovate and improve?”

“The policy notes to the Bill state that repealing the compulsory conversion of failing schools to academy status will result in more flexibility. How has it helped failing schools to be compulsorily converted to academies?”

“Should the Bill include powers for Ofsted to inspect multi-academy trusts?”

“I have an interest as well: I am a local district, not county, councillor. My first question is for Clare. What are the benefits of a home education from your perspective?”

“You have mentioned children with special needs and disabilities and children who have been bullied in the mainstream school system. Are there are other groups of children who benefit from the flexibility of a home-based environment?”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Huq. In my constituency of Stratford-on-Avon, I have heard from numerous parents and carers how they are constantly battling to get their children assessed for EHCPs. Some are waiting years. That leaves families in limbo, often forcing them into lengthy and stressful t…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for securing this important and timely debate. Even when plans are eventually put in place, children and young people struggle to get suitable school places. They face hours of travel each day, especially in rural areas, or they are left at home without appropriate education. Does my hon. Friend …”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir John. I thank the hon. Member for West Bromwich (Sarah Coombes) for securing this important debate. Knife crime continues to be a devastating issue across the UK, and the west midlands is no exception. The number of recorded offences—over 3,600 last year, a 6% incr…”

“I want to focus now on multi-agency working and safeguarding partners such as the police, the local authorities, and the ICBs. This Committee heard evidence that there are problems with multi-agency working. We heard issues of workforce difficulties. We also heard about these bodies having separate and overlapping poli…”

“What are your views on the recommendations made by the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse and, in particular, the mandatory reporting duty and the creation of a child protection authority? In particular, you told the previous Committee that introducing a mandatory reporting duty for child sexual abuse may resu…”

“I thank the hon. Member for Stroud (Dr Opher) for securing this important debate, and I thank all the Members who have contributed so passionately. When we talk about obesity, and in particular childhood obesity, we must not overlook the structural barriers that prevent healthy choices. Several key policies could make …”

“The difference in educational outcomes between children and young people from less and more affluent backgrounds is reported to be at its greatest level for more than a decade. That is another concerning development. How do you intend to reverse this?”

“In rural areas in particular, you may have mainstream schools with very high-quality provision but they are struggling to recruit and retain teaching assistants, for example, who obviously support the work with SEND pupils. Are you thinking about how you could look at a career path for teaching assistants, with continu…”

“Will the right hon. Gentleman give way?”

“I thank the right hon. Member for giving way. Does he agree that rejecting the ombudsman’s recommendations for the compensation of WASPI women undermines the role of independent bodies in holding the Government to account? If we cannot rely on the Government to implement such findings, what message does that send to th…”

“Secretary of State, child poverty has increased massively with over 4 million children living in poverty, and we also have seen an increase in the number of children in poverty living in larger families of three or more children. You co-chair the Government’s Child Poverty Taskforce. Will you look at the impact of the …”

“In my constituency, many family farms exceed the threshold due to the high value of the land and machinery. Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that these changes threaten to push family-run farms into the hands of large corporations and therefore both erode rural communities and jeopardise our domestic food security?”