Office for Students: Appointment

Liz McInnes Excerpts
Monday 8th January 2018

(6 years, 3 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. I am looking to end these exchanges at quarter past 5, so Members need to be very brief.

Liz McInnes Portrait Liz McInnes (Heywood and Middleton) (Lab)
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The Ministers says that he condemns Toby’s Young’s past comments, but the only appropriate condemnation would be to remove him from the board of the Office for Students. Does the Minister agree that a suitable replacement would be a representative from the University and College Union, so that university staff have a voice on the board?

Lord Johnson of Marylebone Portrait Joseph Johnson
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No, that would not be appropriate. I take the same view that the shadow Education Secretary took with respect to the comments of the hon. Member for Sheffield, Hallam (Jared O'Mara) when she said that he deserved a second chance and that she was happy to sit alongside him because the comments happened a long time ago. In her words,

“People do change their views... it is important that they recognise that and apologise and correct that behaviour.”

That is what we are expecting Toby Young to do.