As Labour Couple Move to a Good School Area Tories Ask, Why?

Western Mail › April 27, 2006

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Summary

Questions raised over Assembly members home allowances A POLITICAL couple were last night (WED) urged to make a public statement after being accused of using public money to improve their three-year-old childs chances of attending a good school. Labour AMs Huw Lewis and Lynne Neagle, who respectively represent Merthyr Tydfil and Torfaen, are understood to have moved from a rented flat in Cardiff Bay, buying a house in Penarth, within the catchment area of Evenlode Primary School, one of the best in Wales. The married couples rented flat in Century Wharf, Cardiff Bay, was within the catchment area of Mount Stuart Primary School in Butetown, officially the most deprived local government ward in Wales. Mr Lewis is the Assemblys Deputy Social Justice Minister and an outspoken advocate of the rights of deprived Valleys communities. An anonymous email received by the Western Mail said, I have anonymised this email because it is very important to me that my identity is protected. I trust that you will respect that. I just wanted to draw your attention, if you are not aware already, to the two Labour AMs who are using their expenses public funds to subsidise a mortgage in the catchment area of the poshest primary school in Penarth. Funny how they have abandoned their rented flat in Butetown (the most deprived area in Wales) just as their child is reaching primary school age. Most AMs, including Mr Lewis and Ms Neagle, are entitled to claim up to pounds 12,000 a year for overnight accommodation in Cardiff. This can include rent or mortgage interest payments. The Welsh Conservatives social justice spokesman Mark Isherwood said, Allegations of this nature are very serious indeed, particularly when the issue of public money is involved. Huw Lewis and Lynne Neagle should make an immediate statement to clear up this matter and set the record straight so that there can be no misunderstanding whatsoever. If these allegations turn out to be true, I believe these self-styled champions of social justice are guilty of the same hypocrisy which saw Tony Blair send his son Euan to the grant maintained London Oratory School while his own party opposed schools opting out of local authority control. A Plaid Cymru spokesman said, Its no secret that elitism is rife in the Labour Party and that its elected members and supporters are used to receiving some form of recognition for their work. However, this allegation raises further questions over Labours use of allowances. Although it may be within the Assemblys rules, I do not believe it is right to use public money in such a way.

Huw Lewis recently wrote in the Western Mail, Wales is a grossly unequal society you see it so clearly when you represent a constituency like mine. Unequal not just in terms of personal prosperity, but also in terms of access to public services and the stepping stones they offer to opportunity and a more fulfilled life. Most people in Wales, however, dont have the privilege of being given pounds 24,000 of public money to help move closer to a school they want their child to attend. As Wales is so unequal it is up to his Labour Party which is in government in Wales, and has been since the creation of the Assembly in 1999, to improve the education system in this country. If the Labour Government had done a better job in the past seven years there may not have been any need for them to move in the first place.