Crumbling schools indicative of 13 years of Tory ‘failure’, Labour says – live

Jeremy Hunt has said the government will “spend what it takes” to make schools safe after classrooms were forced to close just before the new term amid concerns about crumbling concrete.

The chancellor moved to reassure parents that an “exhaustive process” has been carried out to identify any unsafe buildings, amid accusations ministers failed to act quickly enough to mitigate risks raised in 2018.

But he admitted that along with the potential danger of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac), there are concerns about the possibility of a “wider” problem with asbestos in schools.

He said education secretary Gillian Keegan had “acted immediately” after new information came to light over the summer about the potential risk Raac, a lightweight material used up to the mid-1990s.

Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg show, Mr Hunt would not speculate on the potential cost of fixing the problem, but said: “We will spend what it takes to make sure children can go to school safely, yes.”

Below is a running list of the schools in England currently on the “crumbling building”:

The chancellor has insisted ministers acted on crumbling schools at risk of collapse as they were told of dangers, despite evidence the government was warned years ago.

Jeremy Hunt on Sunday denied that the government’s austerity programme was to blame for the state of the buildings, while Labour accused the Tories of “negligence”.

Jon Stone has the full report:

But what is aerated concrete, and why is it such a risk? Alexander Butler reports:

The education secretary has been accused of going into “hiding” during the school concrete scandal.

Gillian Keegan appeared in a pre-recorded interview on Thursday but has not done an interview since.

Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, appeared on the Sunday morning political programmes to field questions for the government.

Speaking to Sky News deputy politics editor Sam Coates, an unnamed Tory MP described her response as “atrocious”, adding: “[She] went into hiding it seems as she either wasn’t across detail on Thursday or didn’t know schools would have to close.

“This investigation on school structures has been going on for a while, I am gobsmacked the advice so quickly and brutally performed a handbrake turn. So Keegan needs to be transparent.”

Education secretary Gillian Keegan will make a statement on the school concrete scandal in parliament this week.

Treasury minister told Times Radio earlier that a full list of the schools affected would be published but it was still a “moving target”.

More than 100 schools have been forced to close or partially shut although the number is expected to rise as experts carry out more checks.

Labour has put out a new attack ad aimed at pinning the blame for the school concrete scandal on Rishi Sunak.

“Do you think your child’s schools should be safe? Rishi Sunak doesn’t,” the online ad says.

It has been produced in the same style as a separate attack ad published earlier this year that caused outrage by claiming the prime minister did not want sex offenders sent to jail.

Crumbling school buildings symbolise 13 years of Tory failure in government, Labour has claimed.

Bridget Phillipson, the shadow education secretary, also sought to pin the blame for the RAAC scandal on Rishi Sunak.

“I can think of a no more defining image about the last 13 years of Conservative government than children being sat in classrooms under metal props to prevent the ceilings literally falling in on their heads,” she told the BBC on Sunday morning.

“Rishi Sunak himself as well bears responsibility for this,” she added.

The closure of schools due to concerns over RAAC is not a return to the “dark days” of lockdown, the education secretary has said.

Writing in The Sun on Sunday, Gillian Keegan said she had “no choice” but to close or partially shut more than 100 schools in England just days ahead of the new term.

“As secretary of state for education my first duty is to protect the safety of pupils, teachers and school workers across this country,” she wrote,

“But I want to reassure families that this is not a return to the dark days of school lockdowns.”

The chancellor has insisted ministers acted on crumbling schools at risk of collapse as they were told of dangers, despite evidence the government was warned years ago.

Jeremy Hunt on Sunday denied that the government’s austerity programme was to blame for the state of the buildings while Labour accused the Tories of “negligence”.