Tulip Siddiq responds to Court of Appeal ruling that Education Secretary acted unlawfully in removing safeguards for children in care

Tulip Siddiq MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Children and Early Years, responding to the Court of Appeal ruling that the Education Secretary acted unlawfully in removing safeguards for children in care at the start of the pandemic, said:

“We told the Education Secretary time and time again to consult properly on this dangerous and unnecessary attack on children’s rights, but unfortunately he did not listen.

“This ruling is further proof of Gavin Williamson’s staggering incompetence. He must now come to Parliament and apologise for acting unlawfully and letting down the most vulnerable children.”

Ends

Notes to Editors

· In a judgment given today (24 November), the Court of Appeal has unanimously declared that the Secretary of State for Education, Gavin Williamson, acted unlawfully in failing to consult the Children’s Commissioner for England and other children’s rights organisations before making “substantial and wide-ranging” [79] changes to legal protections for England’s 78,000 chil