A VOTE by the Lib-Dem rank-and-file to boycott parent and teacher-sponsored “free schools” opened up a dangerous divide in the coalition yesterday.
The conference defied Nick Clegg’s pleadings by backing a motion that warned the flagship government policy would increase “social divisiveness” and trigger worse school results overall.
The vote committed the Lib-Dems to campaign to prevent groups from trying to set up “free schools” – even though a huge expansion is the stated policy of Conservative Education Secretary Michael Gove.
And it sought to rein in the expansion of academies, by demanding they pay the “full cost” of services supplied by local councils which should retain “strategic oversight” over school places.
The vote was a huge embarrassment for schools minister Sarah Teather, who had earlier warned the packed hall that a boycott would be “fundamentally illiberal”.
