Diana Johnson
Main Page: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)Department Debates - View all Diana Johnson's debates with the Department for Education
(12 years ago)
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Michael Gove
It is one of the many causes of envy in my breast when I contemplate my hon. Friend to know that he has the benefit of Mrs Bone’s advice at the breakfast table every day. All I can say is that Northamptonshire has many, many attractions—chief among them, of course, Mrs Bone—but the matter of whether the Department should relocate is properly one for the permanent secretary.
Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)
T3. Does the Secretary of State think that granting a licence to one of the Chuckle Brothers to set up a free school was one of his better ideas, and now that it has been rescinded how much did it actually cost to progress the project?
Michael Gove
I am surprised that the hon. Lady is so opposed to northern comedians, given that her party has been such a fantastic platform for so many of them. It was not one of the Chuckle Brothers whom we invited to open a free school in Rotherham, but the vice-principal of a very successful school in the north-east. In the end, that lady decided to withdraw her application, but the fact that someone who is strong in the variety world wanted to back it is, to my mind, proof that increasingly, when people from whatever background look at the Government, there is a smile on their face as they contemplate our achievements.