Oral Answers to Questions

Chris Leslie Excerpts
Monday 23rd May 2011

(12 years, 11 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Michael Gove Portrait Michael Gove
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I welcome my hon. Friend’s radicalism and idealism. I want to see how the first free schools do when they open in September. Given some of the inspirational figures who plan to lead them, I am convinced that we will see standards rise and that, as we see them rise, the innovations that those figures bring to the state sector will be spread more widely.

Chris Leslie Portrait Chris Leslie (Nottingham East) (Lab/Co-op)
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Is it true that there are 100 civil servants in the Department working on the free schools programme? If it is not 100, how many is it? What is the cost of that number of civil servants, and what on earth are they doing?

Nick Boles Portrait Nick Boles (Grantham and Stamford) (Con)
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More than they were under you!