Gregory Stafford

I thank the hon. Member for Tipton and Wednesbury (Antonia Bance) for her passionate speech. I think I am correct in saying that she was an Oxford University Student Union officer when I arrived at the university. I remember her passionate defence of socialism then, and I have seen it again today. Her daughter, sitting in the Gallery, will be very proud of her, following her speech. Unfortunately, however, that defence of socialist principles runs like a thread through the Labour party today. It should not come as any surprise that this new Labour party, which is willing to tax some of the poorest pensioners in the country, has no compunction about taxing some of the most needy children in the country—a shameful act. I am not talking only about the more than 3,000 pupils in my constituency who receive an independent education; I also speak for the many thousands in the state sector on whom this policy will have an impact. Labour Members seem to forget completely about the impact on the state sector. As I walked along Firgrove Hill in Farnham during the election campaign, I met a father who had just heard that the independent school to which he was going to send his two children had closed. That was in July, and there was no place at the local state school, Weydon—a fabulous school. Even if it had spaces, however, that father would not have been able to send his children there, because he had not sent his children to a feeder school, so even if there are places, not all children can get in. This measure will have a massive impact on education for those with special educational needs and disabilities. There are independent SEND schools in my constituency, including More House, a fabulous boys’ school. Jonathan Hetherington, the headmaster, has spoken passionately about what this policy will do to his school: 60% of his pupils are on an education, health and care plan, which means that 40% will be affected by the tax. What will happen to those pupils? For one thing, they are likely to drop out immediately because their parents cannot afford it. Perhaps they will then apply for an EHCP, but it will take many months, if not years, for them to get it, and they will be out of education during that time. It is a total disgrace. Equally importantly, when they get the EHCP, it will add a massive cost to the local authorities, which are already overstretched. The simple fact is that independent SEND schools are saving those authorities money. We also have to realise that independent schools are huge employers, certainly in my constituency. In June, during the election campaign, I knocked on a door in an area that was not affluent—in fact, it is the most deprived part of my constituency. The gentleman who opened the door informed me that he would be voting Conservative because of Labour’s potential policy on this matter. When I asked him why, he said that he was a groundsman at one of the local independent schools, and feared for his job because the school was likely to close; so this policy affects the economy as well. If education is not a charitable purpose, and if educating our children is not a fundamental principle that we in this House should support, I do not know what we are here for. Labour needs to review this policy, and scrap it as soon as possible.