Lewes' Conservative MP votes to cover up school concrete crisis

Maria Caulfield, MP for Lewes and government minister, has voted to block the publication of spending requested by the Department for Education to fix RAAC school roofs, amid revelations that funding requests were blocked by Rishi Sunak during his time as Chancellor.

Caulfield said: “It was a Humble address vote. We never vote for a Humble Address vote by the opposition as it is akin to a confidence vote in the Government. The key issue for me is we have no schools in the Lewes constituency affected by RAAC and parents should be reassured by this in our local area.”

Councillor James MacCleary, Liberal Democrat candidate for Lewes, has slammed Maria Caulfield's “utter contempt” for local constituents after the vote to cover up the thinking behind the government’s decision to underinvest in school maintenance.

Cllr MacCleary said: “As a dad with two children at primary school locally, I cannot believe that Maria Caulfield and her Conservative colleagues are continuing to block full transparency from the government over what led us to this point. It is a source of real anxiety for parents who are sending their children off to school every morning not knowing if there is dangerous concrete that could collapse at any moment.

“How else can we fully understand the situation if the government hides the facts? Yet again it feels like we are being left in the dark and taken for granted by Conservative Ministers. For Maria Caulfield to not want to see this information made public speaks volumes.

"There is nothing more important than the safety of our children. The government has to make emergency funding available to fix this problem before someone gets hurt. This is just the latest example of what happens if you don't spend the money needed to properly maintain public services - they literally fall apart!

“By trying to conceal their underfunding of schools, Maria Caulfield and her government colleagues have shown their utter contempt for local residents and our children's safety. We deserve better.”