Tax on Prudent Schools Should Never Have Seen Light of Day - Say Uttlesford Liberal Democrats (Saffron Walden Constituency Liberal Democrats)

Saffron Walden Constituency Liberal Democrats <info@saffronwaldenlibdems.org.uk>

Tax on Prudent Schools Should Never Have Seen Light of Day - Say Uttlesford Liberal Democrats

November 4, 2007 10:17 PM

Leading Uttlesford Liberal Democrat Councillors have welcomed the Government's U-Turn on its proposals to impose a 5% 'tax' on school cash balances.

Liberal Democrats led calls for the plans to be shelved, tabling a Parliamentary Motion and raising the concerns of head teachers and governors with the Schools Secretary.

Over 20,000 schools would have been hit by the proposed change, which would have even affected money already committed to major building projects.

Uttlesford Liberal Democrat Leader and School Governor Cllr Peter Wilcock commented:

"This daft idea should never have seen the light of day!"

"Head teachers and governors across the country were outraged about how the claw back was set to have a devastating impact on their school budgets and could even have led to staffing cuts."

Uttlesford Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader and Member for Thaxted Cllr Martin Foley said:

"I hope now Ministers will come clean and accept that these proposals were wrong, and assure schools that they will not seek to resurrect them in a year's time when the row has died down."

"The fact that such absurd proposals were put forward in the first place highlights a wider problem with the way this Government works. Do ministers seriously believe that they know better than 23,000 head teachers and governing bodies how to spend the money given to them?"