Lord Cameron has issued a stark warning to peers, urging them to vote against the government’s education reforms, which he branded “damaging and nonsensical”.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, the former prime minister accused the Labour government of swinging a “spite-laden wrecking ball” by cancelling numerous free schools projects.
The free schools programme, introduced in 2010, allows independent groups to establish state-funded schools that operate outside local authority management.
“The Starmer Government’s response to all this has been to take a spite-laden wrecking ball to the entire project,” the Tory peer wrote.
He detailed the extent of the cancellations: “The next generation of free schools all budgeted and ready to go? Axed. 46 projects cancelled – 18 of them special schools, with a further 59 vital special and alternative provision projects hanging in the balance.”
These cancellations are anticipated to save approximately £600 million. This saving is part of the government’s wider £3 billion plan, which aims to create 50,000 new school places for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
Lord Cameron, who was made a life peer in 2023, urged the House of Lords to vote against the Bill.
“They are the future, which is why we must halt these damaging and nonsensical plans,” he said of students.
Labour’s flagship education Bill also includes several measures that bring academies into line with council-run schools where they had previously had freedoms.
Under the changes, academies will be required to follow the national curriculum and follow the same minimum pay and conditions framework as maintained schools.
Additionally, the Bill would introduce new intervention powers for when trusts are not meeting expected standards that could see their schools moved elsewhere.
“As for the academies, Labour are systematically dismantling the freedoms that helped them to succeed,” he said.
“The freedoms for schools to hire the staff they need, to teach the curriculum that best serves their pupils, and for parents to choose the right school for their child, have been at the heart of cross-party success for years. The Bill reverses all of that. And it is children who will lose out.”
Earlier in January, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson tabled an amendment to the Bill, setting out plans for Ofsted to inspect multi-academy trusts, as previously promised in the party’s election manifesto.
Academy trust-wide inspections will look at how well trusts improve schools, the quality of their education, how they use resources, and how well they care for the well-being of pupils.
Ms Phillipson said: “Every child, no matter their background, should be able to achieve and thrive, and strong schools working together through high quality trusts help make that possible.
“That collaboration must be matched by clear, fair accountability. Trust inspection will recognise excellence, support improvement and ensure no child is overlooked, especially those with the greatest needs.”
The Department for Education has been contacted for comment.
