Alliance Leader blasts Eagle for Antrim integrated school snub

12.00.00pm GMT Wed 20th Dec 2006

Alliance Leader and South Antrim MLA David Ford has hit out at today's news that the Education Minister Maria Eagle for refusing to create an integrated secondary school in Antrim.

David Ford said: "The department has agreed to funding for Parkhall Controlled High School and for St Benedict's Maintained High School, yet they are ignoring the large and growing demand for an integrated college in Antrim. This demand is shown by increasing enrolment at Round Tower Integrated Primary School.

"If the government is to make any sense of the Bain Report, the department must immediately set up a working group to look at the future of secondary education across all sectors.

"Refusing funding for integrated education whilst funding the existing segregated schools flies in the face of the shared future policy."