Office for Fair Access
Debate between Anne Main and Vince Cable(12 years, 2 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
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Vince Cable
No, I was not, and it is not appropriate for me to investigate how the Select Committee came to its conclusions. I have already responded to it, and its Chairman, in a very proper way, has set out how it operates.
Mrs Anne Main (St Albans) (Con)
It is notable that, in defiance of the Select Committee, there have been no comments about why a minority report was not produced in the event that some people did not concur with the findings of the Select Committee. I therefore suggest that, by ignoring the Select Committee, we are doing a disservice to those Members who spent time considering the representations to the Committee. May I urge the Secretary of State to give the House an assurance that we will not allow the nuclear option to discriminate against pupils from high-achieving schools such as mine in St Albans?
Vince Cable
I have already made it clear that there is no question of discriminating against people with ability. My constituency has two of the most successful independent schools in the country. I fully support their activities, and frequently visit them and work with them, so there is no question whatever of discrimination. Access is a much broader concept: it is helping people to realise their potential, and what can possibly be wrong with that?