Letter: Lib Dem rescue plan for schools

Lib Dem rescue plan for schools

Sir: I was amazed to read Diane Coyle's article claiming that Liberal Democrat plans to boost education funding by pounds 2bn per annum would not make much difference ("Failed maths will never make the grade", 4 March). She is also wrong to imply that any of the pounds 2bn per annum would be used to fund the National Health Service.

Liberal Democrats are the only party to have faced up to the funding problems in our education system, but we have never pretended that pounds 2bn extra would convert our schools and universities overnight into some sort of financial utopia.

What our pounds 10bn programme for education over a parliament does allow for is the expansion of early-years education for all three- and four-year- olds whose parents want it, a massive boost to investment in books and equipment, the reduction of primary schools' class sizes to 30 pupils or less (benefiting some 1.5 million children), proper funding of special educational needs, more money for higher and further education and a start in reducing the backlog of buildings repair and maintenance work. It would make a very real difference!

MALCOLM BRUCE MP

Liberal Democrat Treasury Spokesman

House of Commons

London SW1