Free school meals and Oxbridge entrants
Shailesh Vara questions the Secretary of State about figures that indicate poorest children are being failed by the education system under Labour.
Mr. Shailesh Vara (N. West Cambridgeshire) (Con): Following the question put by my hon. Friend the Member for Lichfield (Michael Fabricant), may I offer the Secretary of State a second opportunity to apologise to the House for giving misleading information about children who receive free school meals and the number who go to Oxbridge colleges?
Ed Balls: I want more children from free school meals backgrounds to go to Oxford and Cambridge. The fact is that time and again in recent months, in the House and in speeches elsewhere, the shadow Secretary of State has wrongly quoted figures about free school meals in which he has excluded those who go to sixth-form or further education colleges. That does down their achievements, but I have not received any apology from the hon. Gentleman for his errors at any stage. Once he starts to admit his errors, we can start to have a grown-up conversation.
Mr. Speaker: Order. I am not going to become involved in the issue of apologies, but I am sure the Secretary of State is not suggesting that the shadow Secretary of State was deliberately misleading the House. I am sure he is not saying that.
Ed Balls: No, I am not saying that at all. [Hon. Members: "Ah!"] It sounds as if a few Conservative Members have had a large lunch. That was a rather large belch from them.
I have written to the hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) in the past and asked him to correct factual mistakes in his figures. He has refused to do so, even-
Mr. Speaker: Order. We will not become further involved in that debate-although I think that we already have.