Lib Dems condemn Conservative call for profit driven school management

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Fri 27th Jun 2008

Cllr Richard Kemp has condemned the views expressed by Tory Simon Milton in The Times

The Leaders of the Local Government Association Labour and Liberal Democrat Groups today strongly criticised the call by the LGA Chairman Sir Simon Milton for private sector companies to run schools at a profit, as reported in today's Times.

Sir Jeremy Beecham, Labour Group Leader and Lib Dem Group Leader Richard Kemp said:

"Simon Milton is entitled to his personal views, which interestingly do not seem to be shared by the Tory Front Bench. But he has no authority to advance them on behalf of the LGA, especially when his views on this matter do not reflect LGA policy.

"We reject his statement that the role of councils is "merely to commission public services". In controversial matters of this kind we would expect the LGA Chairman to consult other political leaders in the Association, and in the absence of agreement to make it clear that he speaks in a personal capacity only.

"The Association is supposed to work on consensus for all councils not just Conservative ones - that is the agreement we are committed to and that is how we hope the LGA can go forwards."

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Sir Simon Milton, Conservative Chairman of the Local Government Association in The Times