Nadhim Zahawi’s Schools Bill makes for a curious tale. Announced to much fanfare in the spring, the bill is the key plank of the Government’s education agenda.
It has a number of elements, including introducing a compulsory register for homeschooled children and new rules on attendance. However, it was Mr Zahawi’s plan for an overhaul of academy school regulation which proved most controversial.
When the Bill was debated in the House of Lords there were howls of protest from peers. And it wasn’t just the usual suspects – former Tory education ministers lined up to give the legislation a kicking.
