Nick Mathison
Strangford · Alliance Party · Northern Ireland
“That second part is important. In the scrutiny of the Minister's Bill on school uniforms, we got a little tied up over how we could build in provisions on PE, but, when we got to work on this Bill, we found that there is a simple formulation that will ensure that participation in sport and PE, which, we should remember, is a statutory par…”
“<BR /> <BR />On the basis of that feedback and the other evidence that we received, two draft approaches to developing the Bill were considered. The first was to create a separate, stand-alone Bill with a stand-alone right for pupils to be afforded the choice to wear trousers and to set that out in law.”
“Many schools do that really well, but others, regrettably, do not. To me, only legislation will guarantee the behaviour change that we need. It is not good enough for a Minister to say to young people, "But I give you permission to go and campaign. You run the campaign. Look at Rhea and Astrid: didn't they do so well?".”
“I will name a few: the school uniform must be affordable, so schools have no autonomy on that; and schools must consult with parents when they are changing their policy, so they have no autonomy on that. I could go through every one of the guidelines.”
“depending on the activity. That was to ensure that the need for appropriate clothing for sporting activities was reflected. <BR /> <BR />Ultimately, it is a permissive Bill. It is simply focused on creating a universal right to have the choice to wear trousers and enshrining that in the guidance.”
“Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I will not speak for long, and I do not plan to rehearse everything that has been said. However, I begin by doing something that I overlooked when I spoke at the beginning: thanking the Deputy Chair of the Committee who first proposed the Bill.”
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“I thank the Minister for giving way. Throughout the process, you have been very willing to take interventions as we have debated the draft legislation. <BR /> <BR />Given that it was clear that Members had concerns that they were in the dark about what the guidelines would be, would it not have been helpful to bring us some sort of sense of your intention in order to ease those concerns? There was debate and back and forth in the Committee about how prescriptive primary legislation should be. As those concerns were being highlighted, would that not have helped to ease those concerns and smooth the process to get it over the line?”
“I thank the Minister for giving way. I hope that I have been clear that I really want the legislation to be effective. I will be the first to pay tribute to you if it is, but you are making big statements that it will be effective. We will know whether it is effective only when we know what the guidelines do, because that is what the legislation delivers: guidelines that schools must adhere to. How can we be assured that it will be effective when we do not know what the guidelines will ask schools to do?”
“I thank the Member for giving way. Lots of Members have referred to the evidence that the Committee heard from young people. Do you agree that it potentially sets a dangerous precedent if Committees listen to young people and tick the box to say that they have done so, but then produce legislation that seems to pay no heed to a single thing that they told us? It may reduce young people's enthusiasm to engage in the legislative process.”
“I thank the Minister for that update. Can she provide a further update on the progress in increasing the fees that are payable under the County Court scale?”
“Minister, this is your Bill, and it is you who will be held to account for delivery. I hope that you make the most of this opportunity. The guidelines must be robust and effective, and, for parents, they cannot come soon enough.”
“I will be very, very brief, Mr Deputy Speaker.”
“<BR /> <BR />I will conclude by saying that Alliance will support the Bill at Final Stage today, as we will not countenance blocking any intervention to bring down costs. It is now over to the Minister, however. The Committee worked harder, as the Minister urged us to do. We listened to the evidence. The processes have brought us to this stage.”
“Assurances from the Minister that the Bill delivers will be meaningless if parents do not see a change in the money that they need to spend in order to send their child to school. <BR /> <BR />Briefly, I put on record some concerns that local suppliers have raised with me about the slightly complex position in which they find themselves. They are already facing increasing pressures from their suppliers to commit to orders for next year so that they can secure the best possible prices. Again, the rush that there has been to deliver the guidelines within a timescale of what I can only assume is weeks is potentially putting those businesses under pressure, and their relationships with schools as a result of the need to deliver on policies could be put under threat. Again, I would like clarity from the Minister on that.”
“There was an insistence that that quick turnaround was needed. Undoubtedly, it impacted on the timescale that we had in which to scrutinise the legislation. I therefore hope that the rush to deliver the legislation does result in a positive impact and not in a scramble, in which schools are put under pressure to come up with new policies overnight just to meet the imposed timescale. We all want costs to be dealt with, but they need to be dealt with effectively and in a way that will result in the right impact on parents. Parents desperately need to see costs come down. I hope, come September 2026, that that is what we will see, but the proof of the pudding will be in the eating.”
“Thank you, Mr Speaker. I may be able to get through my contribution before 2.00 pm regardless. I thank the Minister for his intervention. Yes, I was concerned about the timescales but simply because, as I highlight now, if the guidelines arrive in the next two or three weeks — we are being told that November is the key date for their publication — it seems unrealistic to expect schools to implement a significant policy change in that time. My point when we looked at the timescales was always about how on earth we could ask schools to turn it around in that time frame. It therefore does not feel deliverable to me. I sincerely hope that it is, however, because we need to see the costs dealt with.”
“I ask that because, once they are published, schools will need to start thinking about consulting parents and pupils and about engaging with their suppliers. Suppliers will have to start looking at their arrangements and at the uniform stocks that they hold. We are being told that the new policies are deliverable in the prospectuses in November. I would love that to be the case, but I want to hear how the policies will be delivered, because —.”
“We are in the middle of October, and the Bill has reached Final Stage. That is welcome. Parents, who are keen to see interventions in the affordability space, will be pleased to see that we are here on this date and not waiting for another year. We are, however, also in a position in which November is just a couple of weeks away, with still no clarity for schools on what will change next year. We were told that November is a critical deadline. Schools will be writing and publishing their policies, so I ask genuinely — I am not attempting to score a political point — whether the Minister can clarify what schools are meant to be doing in this scenario. Can he provide clarity on when they will get the guidelines?”
“The Committee was, undoubtedly, put under significant pressure from the Minister around our timescales for scrutiny. The Minister made it very clear that he wanted us to work to a timescale in order for the Bill to be completed before November of this year, and that is where we are. It was always highlighted that that was because of the key date of when schools publish their prospectuses. November was highlighted repeatedly as the critical date by which schools needed to have that work done. <BR /> <BR />Alliance was the only party in the Assembly to question the Minister of Education's assurances on the timescales and their deliverability. Others fell into line and backed the Minister without question, but Alliance was always sceptical that that date would be deliverable, and I am keen to be proved wrong.”
“Therefore, as soon as the issue of comfort was introduced, we were quite right to ask questions about what makes a school uniform comfortable and sustainable — affordable, yes, but also comfortable and sustainable. As legislators, it is our job to listen to the evidence and act on it. Again, I urge the Minister to keep in mind, when the guidelines are being drafted, the evidence that the Committee heard. The Bill remains light on detail of how those aspects, which were raised particularly by young people, will be reflected in the guidelines. It is light on that detail, and I am really keen to hear more from the Minister on that. <BR /> <BR />The issue of timescales has been raised, and I want to revisit how the Bill progressed through the Assembly.”
“It has been said that it is a distraction to talk about SEN and the impact of uniform on young people who experience discomfort; about whether or not girls should be assured of their right to wear trousers rather than skirts; or about issues concerning the outdoor curriculum. On whatever issue, arguments were put forward that that is a distraction and not what the Bill is about. However, the Department's own explanatory and financial memorandum for the Bill states:”
“It is the Department that has the resources and the ability to deliver that sort of radical legislative intervention. I hope that the Department is taking that work forward meaningfully and seriously. <BR /> <BR />During the Committee evidence sessions, as I referenced in my remarks as Chair, certain school uniform policy themes came through repeatedly. I want to go back to the issues that were raised by children and young people. I will not go through the areas that they highlighted, but I want to address some of the things that have been said in other debates on the matter.”
“After the Bill passes Final Stage, lots of statements will no doubt be made that we have now dealt with the cost of school uniforms and we can close that chapter. However, parents want to know what is actually going to change. In that scenario, where there has been some doubt about and a question mark over what the change will look like, it is essential that there is a mechanism to create really clear accountability mechanisms in the Bill. I am pleased that that is in the Bill today, so that we know that the Assembly will have to be updated routinely — at least once a mandate — on whether the Bill has delivered or not; told whether a cost cap will be introduced or not; and, if it is not going to be introduced, told why not. A cost cap is the key mechanism that will deliver meaningful change in this area.”
“Until we see those guidelines, we will be guessing about what the impact will be. I know that parents will be watching with the same anticipation to see what the guidelines actually say. For the school that their child attends, which sets the cost of the school uniforms that they have to pay, what will the guidelines actually do? It is vital that we do not let them down, because they are watching. <BR /> <BR />While circumstances have meant that the Bill is not what some Committee members would have wanted, I want to go back to one of the amendments that I referenced in my remarks as Chair: the amendment on accountability. As I have said, parents are watching. They want to know, clearly, what it will mean for them.”
“However, without sight of those guidelines and while we wait for the Minister to publish them— I know that this is rehearsing things that have been raised in the Chamber and in Committee on many occasions, but it does bear repeating — we remain largely in the dark. I do not doubt that the Minister wants a Bill that is effective; I do not know any Minister who sets out to deliver legislation that will not deliver. However, at the moment, we just do not know what those provisions are, so we are operating entirely on trust. I wait with anticipation, as I am sure all colleagues do, to see exactly how the guidelines will deliver on the promise to reduce costs. While there is a fair bit in the Bill, ultimately, when you strip it back, what the Bill does is create guidelines that schools have to adhere to.”
“Parents will talk about skipping meals in order to be able to afford something that is required simply for their child to be able to attend school. That cannot be an acceptable state of affairs. The Bill was our opportunity to ensure that parents did not have to face those kinds of scenarios again — it does not matter which school their children go to, or in which sector: the uniform should be affordable — and to ensure that effective and robust measures were introduced not only to support families but to ensure that schools could be held to account for their approach to their uniform policies if they did not prioritise driving down costs. <BR /> <BR />We are all aware that the Bill will create guidelines that schools must adhere to and that those will be the instrument by which changes can be introduced.”
“It was my first opportunity to see a Bill go through each stage of the process. When I came into the Assembly, I had originally intended to table a private Member's Bill on the school uniforms issue. However, the Minister was there with the Bill early on when the institutions were restored, so I did not have the opportunity to bring my proposals forward in more detail. <BR /> <BR />We all know that the cost of school uniforms has been highlighted repeatedly as causing significant financial strain on families. I do not need to rehearse those arguments or convince anybody of that fact. That was clearly amplified when we began to hear directly in Committee from those who are most impacted on by the cost-of-living crisis. Parents get into debt in order to pay for school uniforms.”
“I will conclude my remarks as Chair simply by saying that I want the Bill to deliver. I think that everybody in the Assembly wants to the Bill to deliver. We all have parents in our constituencies who need it to deliver. I hope that it does not prove to be a missed opportunity where improvements that were considered did not end up being reflected in the legislation. We need to ensure that the Bill is genuinely impactful. That will be in the detail of the guidelines. We all await those with interest and hope that their publication happens quickly. <BR /> <BR />I will now make remarks in my capacity as an Alliance member. As you have already highlighted, Mr Speaker, I am a newly elected Member to the Assembly, and this was my first run through legislation at Committee Stage.”
“I am pleased, however, that the principle of one key Committee amendment has made it into the Bill, which was highlighted by the Minister in his opening remarks; namely the principle of reporting on the progress of the legislation to deal with affordability and accountability on the impact on the cost of uniforms, the need to review that regularly, and to review regularly the need to implement a cost cap. That, at least, ensures accountability even if, ultimately, members may be sceptical about the clear effects of the Bill on parents' pockets and on the young people who wear the uniforms. <BR /> <BR />I have no doubt that my Committee colleagues will have more to say about all those issues, as we covered a huge amount of ground in the evidence sessions on the Bill.”
“It was also clear that school communities should facilitate the reuse of uniforms by providing uniform banks that parents and pupils could access without feeling any shame or stigma for doing so. It is important to put on record that we know of many excellent examples across the school system where those schemes are run very effectively. The Committee welcomed the explicit reference to that in the Bill but had hoped for a clearer requirement for schools to participate in such a scheme, not just that it would appear in the guidelines in some form, because, again, we are not sure exactly how that will look. <BR /> <BR />It is a shame that the Bill, in its final iteration, does not reflect the views or needs of the stakeholders who gave evidence at Committee.”
“We all know that, on the Education Committee, essentially anything that we do is likely to impact on the lives of young people in school, so it is important that we get that right. I am really keen to hear the Minister provide clarification as to what will be done with the Bill beyond affordability — we all know that that is important — to try to address those concerns for young people. <BR /> <BR />The Committee saw sustainability as another aspect of the affordability issue. Just as schools should facilitate the provision of second-hand or hand-me-down uniforms, and also that that practice should be encouraged within families, the Committee was clear that, by reducing the gendered aspects of uniforms, you could encourage that practice rather than restrict it.”
“I feel strongly that, ultimately, we have potentially done our young people a disservice, as the evidence that we heard and discussed does not seem to have been reflected in the legislation that we are debating. I hope that, in the Committee Stage of future Bills, young people will still have the confidence that the evidence that they give and the time that they take to make their views known will actually be taken on board, and that it will not just be the adults in the room nodding politely, patting them on the head and then continuing to do what they had already intended. I think that Committee members across the board would not want to be in that space when we deal with draft legislation in the future.”
“Again, I am keen to hear from the Minister about the guidelines: perhaps he can give us some assurance and confidence that we will see in them a really progressive intervention in that space. I acknowledge Claire Sugden's contribution to the debate on that issue in particular. Witnesses across the spectrum went further, saying that uniform options should be capable of being worn regardless of gender. Again, we do not see that in the Bill. <BR /> <BR />Not for the first time, the Committee reflected on the potential for policies that address the needs of minority students to improve conditions for all students and considered a whole range of inclusive options with that end in mind.”
“Its evidence pointed to some issues of self-consciousness and potential school withdrawal and of attendance at and participation in PE that can arise from school uniform policies not taking proper account of period dignity or other menstruation issues. Again, we do not see the Minister's taking any of those issues forward today. I hope, again, that the Minister can assure us that the guidelines will address some of those concerns. <BR /> <BR />The Committee was cognisant of gender budgeting issues. While the period poverty legislation made in the previous mandate is one helpful measure to remove some of the systemic barriers from girls' equal access to education, dropping the requirement to wear skirts and allowing girls to wear trousers would certainly have been another.”
“The Bill before us today has not addressed those issues as comprehensively as it could have done. <BR /> <BR />It is worth noting in particular that the Committee heard evidence from primary-school children who were award-winning activists, describing their campaign for school uniform policies to allow girls to wear trousers. We hoped that the Minister would take up some of that evidence and reflect at Consideration Stage or Further Consideration Stage on whether there was scope to bring forward a proposal on that, but, ultimately, we have not landed in that position. We also heard from Menstruation Matters.”
“<BR /> <BR />One of the Committee's concerns throughout the process was that the Bill as drafted, and as it has come before us today, ultimately leaves all that at the will of the Minister in deciding what goes into the guidelines. I will be clear: I want the guidelines to be effective. The Committee was clear that it wanted the guidelines to be effective, but we do not know what they will look like or whether they will address any of the issues that young people raised. <BR /> <BR />It is over to the Minister now to assure the Committee and the Assembly that the guidelines will make a real difference on not just cost but the wider issues that the Bill strays into. It was never just about affordability. The explanatory and financial memorandum (EFM) for the Bill was clear that issues of comfort and practicality were also to be considered.”
“Many young people will be disappointed that their evidence was not taken up by the Minister, as it seems that the Bill reflects very few, if any, of their concerns. <BR /> <BR />The Committee heard from young people on a range of issues connected to uniform, covering a desire not to limit choice based on gender; sensory issues arising from special educational needs; the higher cost of uniform for girls than for boys; period dignity; uniform that makes PE participation accessible; warmth and comfort; access to outdoor learning and play — the list goes on. Young people consistently raised those things with us as being important to them. I sincerely hope that some of those themes will be addressed in the — I trust — soon-to-be-published guidelines, but that is ultimately entirely in the gift of the Minister.”
“Thank you, Mr Speaker. <BR /> <BR />Affordability is at the heart of the very idea of school uniform and of the Bill, but, in the Committee's view, uniform should also be seen to change with the times, so the Committee prioritised listening to the views of the people who wear school uniform: young people. Young people were very clear in their evidence to the Committee on their experiences of how school uniform can impact on different aspects of school life. They were clear about the things that were priorities for them. They were concerned with issues of equality, comfort and practicality, and it is deeply disappointing that the Minister's Bill did not take those issues forward. Youth engagement is not just about listening to young people, ticking a box and then doing what was originally planned regardless.”
“<BR /> <BR />On affordability, the Committee was very clear that there was a need for clearer interventions. Challenges were identified with implementing a cost cap, with limited evidence being available on how it would operate in practice. It is regrettable that the Committee's attempt to amend the Bill to mandate the Department to limit branded items, rather than to create an enabling power, was unsuccessful. It is those branded items that are seen by many parents as a real cost driver. It is regrettable that that did not make its way into the Bill. We are left simply with enabling powers, which may —.”
“Regrettably, the Bill that is before Members today does not reflect the majority of the Committee's priorities or the amendments that it worked on, and I suggest that the Bill is the poorer for it. <BR /> <BR />All Committee members absolutely and unequivocally agreed that uniform should be affordable and that the cost of attending school should not be a barrier for any pupil, regardless of what school they seek to attend, in which sector, or where they are in Northern Ireland. A uniform is to be worn every day, so it should be suitable for all school activities and should resist wear, reducing the need for additional clothing to be purchased. At its best, uniform can give pupils a sense of community and belonging, creating a level playing field for learning on an even footing, regardless of economic background.”
“If the cost of moving quickly is a Bill that does not deliver effectively, however, we must ask whether we have carried out our role as effectively as we could have. In any case, with the changed timeline, the Committee maintained its engagement with stakeholders and acted as an honest broker for their concerns. Without sight of the guidelines, the Committee gave a clear steer on what members felt the content of those guidelines should be. The Committee completed its task with full transparency, so the public is aware of the issues that the Committee sought to prioritise in the future guidelines and of what is in the final Bill. The Committee for Education took its task seriously. At times, it felt like many aspects of its work were being frustrated.”
“The Minister raised that again today, yet we are in the middle of October, and schools have had no sight of the promised guidelines that the Bill will give rise to. That is, ultimately, the legislative effect of the Bill: to create guidelines to which schools must adhere. All Committee members felt that the timescale for scrutiny was, ultimately, curtailed, whether or not they felt that it was justified — there were different opinions on that. I take the view that a more rigorous Committee Stage could have been delivered, had we had more time. I reiterate, for clarity, that the Committee never sought to delay or obstruct the timescales for moving the Bill through the Assembly. The Committee understood the absolute imperative to deliver quickly for parents.”
“That is a Committee's statutory responsibility, and it must be given the time that it needs to report on its findings, fully satisfied that the appropriate level of scrutiny has been applied. <BR /> <BR />In the case of this Bill, there seemed from the outset to be an interest from the Minister and the Department to attempt to directly influence the timescales for Committee scrutiny. As Chair of the Committee, I find it regrettable that a decision was taken, at the outset of the Committee's work, to so significantly reduce the timescale for Committee scrutiny of the Bill. It was put to the Committee by the Minister that it was vital that the Bill be enacted in time for the deadline for schools to publish school uniform policies in their prospectuses, and the date of November was repeatedly highlighted in that regard.”
“I think that the Minister knows that every undertaking that the Committee gave was around wanting to deliver the Committee Stage as quickly as possible, while building in the time required to ensure that proper scrutiny was done. We never set a date for the conclusion of Committee Stage with the intention of it being a target to be reached; we were clear that the Bill needed to be delivered quickly. It is a clear principle — there are precedents for this — that a Committee decides the time frame and parameters for its work and creates its own framework for engagement with the people whose lives will be impacted on the most by the proposed legislative change.”
“I will contribute to the Final Stage debate first in my capacity as Chairperson of the Education Committee, and then as an Alliance Member. <BR /> <BR />After the Bill passed its Second Stage in March, with broad welcome from across the House, albeit with caveats around the need to get into the detail of what the Bill would deliver, we moved into Committee Stage, where the detailed scrutiny work began. I take issue, probably on behalf of the whole Committee — it may be that we all agree on this — with the characterisation of there being a desire to have a "leisurely" Committee Stage. That is not an accurate reflection of the situation.”
“The Minister is aware that the issues of adoption also apply to sewerage infrastructure and that NI Water has no budget to carry out some of those works. I think of Magheraknock Park in Ballynahinch, which the Minister knows of. In the Minister's plans, where there is no developer to make liable — in that instance in my constituency, the developer has passed away — is there any scenario where she can see funds being released to NI Water to allow the works to bring sewerage systems up to standard?”
“I hope that lessons are learned for the next time.”
“There were further delays in information about transport and meal provision arriving on social media. Again, all of that could have been avoided had early decisions been taken on the previous day in order to allow our schools to prepare. <BR /> <BR />I could go through a timeline of the pressures that school leaders faced in trying to manage the situation. They were receiving contact on all fronts: from social media, from school apps, from phone calls to the office and from parents at the door. They also had to manage their staff's childcare needs on the day. In short, we have an efficient, timely weather warning system in place. The EA had time to utilise it and give proper notice.”
“I understand that not every weather event affords them that time, but, in this case, we had ample notice, so it is hard to understand why a call was not made the previous day so that schools had time to plan and communicate clearly and effectively, also allowing parents to plan. <BR /> <BR />The breaking down of the closures by county created confusion. Parents were uncertain whether Belfast was included, and, despite the Met Office's weather warning map not covering all of County Antrim, the EA's closure had a blanket effect. That could have been avoided by earlier and clearer communications. To add to that, some communications on transport and meal provision did not land until the closure time of noon was imminent, with mixed messaging coming from different EA departments.”
“Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I will speak today about the problems that schools, pupils and parents faced as a result of the handling by the Education Authority (EA) of school closures arising from Storm Amy. Everyone here will agree that pupil and staff safety on school premises is key, but the timeline for arriving at the school closure announcements on Friday caused unnecessary pressure to come to bear on school leaders and parents. Despite an amber weather warning being in place from 1 October, schools began to receive contact about closures only on the day of the storm, at a point at which kids were already in school, parents were already at work and the school day had started. School leaders simply needed time to manage the closures.”
“Does the Minister still intend to go to out to public consultation on small business rate relief and the non-domestic vacant rating in October?”
“<BR /> <BR />On the content of the guidelines, I would have liked to see a rights-respecting framework in the Bill to ensure that uniform policies are fit for purpose for the 21st century as regards choice, gender, disability, special educational needs (SEN) and cultural difference. Despite our efforts to amend it at the previous stages, again, that is not the Bill before us today. I hope that the guidelines, when published, do more than permit schools to adopt progressive uniform policies and clearly require them to do so. <BR /> <BR />We will watch how this progresses with interest. Our children and young people deserve uniform policies that respect their rights and support them to attend school and learn in comfortable practical uniforms that are fit for 2025.”
“I, along with a number of my Committee colleagues, would like to have seen — indeed, we sought to amend the Bill to ensure it — that the Bill included clear provisions to address affordability much more explicitly. That is not the Bill that is before us today. I therefore await the guidelines in the sincere hope that they are robust, enforceable and clear. The outcome that I want is that no parent is placed in financial hardship to send their child to school. The Bill and, ultimately, the Minister will be judged on its success or otherwise in ensuring that that outcome is delivered.”
“I sincerely hope that the Minister acts in good faith on that and, when we see the guidelines, it is clear that that will be required. When it comes to the publication of the guidelines, the Minister should clarify further what the expectations will be around the "declaration" that amendment No 4 would introduce. It is vital that there is no uncertainty on that point. Those assurances are absolutely critical to my support for the amendment. <BR /> <BR />I will conclude by making some brief remarks as an Alliance member. This group of amendments is really about the content of the guidelines that we will end up with, which is ultimately what will make the difference to the cost of school uniforms for parents.”
“I note the Minister's comments on that and welcome his assurances that evidence needs to be supplied and that a school manager cannot simply declare that something is good value and provide no evidence. We all want to avoid a scenario where a school charges hundreds of pounds for a blazer and simply says, "Yes it is a single-supplier arrangement, but I declare that it is good value", if anyone looking at it objectively could see that that is not the case. <BR /> <BR />I welcome the assurances that evidence would be required. On the basis of those assurances from the Minister, I am content to accept the new amendment, but other Members may well take a different view from the Committee. The Minister has provided assurances that any declaration would require evidence of how it delivers good value for money.”
“On that basis, when we consider the issue of single-supplier arrangements, with which the amendments are concerned, it is good and appropriate to see them in their own space in the Bill. That provides clarity on their importance and effect. However, I emphasise that the Committee was always clear that single-supplier arrangements should only ever be permitted when the school manager provides a clear explanation of how they deliver value for money. The original Committee amendment was clear on that point: that an explanation would be required of how value for money would be achieved by the single-supplier arrangement. <BR /> <BR />The Minister highlighted the fact that the new clause uses the word "declaration" as regards how it will meet that test of value for money, rather than "explaining".”