Conservative schools plans will mean raiding budgets of existing schools

12.03.00am GMT Tue 16th Feb 2010

David Laws MP with Chelmsford Lib Dem Stephen Robinson

The budgets of existing schools could be raided to fund Conservative plans to establish new schools. According to Lib Dem Shadow Schools Secretary David Laws, that is the only possible conclusion, given Conservative plans to cut the Schools budget.

Conservative spokesman Michael Gove announced plans to set up Swedish-style "free schools". David Laws commented: "These schools plans are deeply flawed both in terms of money and on the curriculum.

"Michael Gove's plan to cut the education budget means his ability to establish new schools will inevitably depend on raiding the budgets of existing schools.

"On the curriculum, Conservative plans are in even more of an incoherent muddle. They plan to impose an absurdly detailed curriculum on most state-funded schools, while allowing free schools to adopt a pick-and-mix curriculum - even if this means dropping core subjects such as British history and modern languages.

"It is impossible to justify in any logical way a system which imposes such centralized uniformity on 23,500 schools while allowing a small minority to teach whatever they like at the taxpayers' expense."