TNAG-1364-FCO40-1810-Hong-Kong-Hansard-reports-and-minutes-of-the-meetings-of-the-1986 — Page 5

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independent schools which are able to provide

education of acceptable quality. Furthermore,

it is also Government's intention in the light of

the Education Commission's Report No. 1 to begin

buying Form 4 and 5 places in such schools from a

future date to assist in the phasing out of the JSEA.

A number of private independent schools will,

therefore, continue to contribute to the provision

of public sector school places. This also means,

of course, that there will be a number of private

independent schools in which the. Government will no

longer be buying places and, as members know, the

process of phasing out the buying of places in these

schools is already in hand, to commence in September 1986.

The long-term future of private independent schools

is not simply a question of the number of places

bought by Government, however. This must obviously

be determined by the ability of these schools to

provide an education service of a nature or of a

quality which parents are willing and able to afford.

I have no doubt that there will always be a market

for the services provided by the best of the private

schools and the continued existence of such schools

within a diverse education system will be welcomed

by Government.

The private non-profit-making schools, to which I

referred earlier, will continue to provide bought

places as at present and no change is expected in

the foreseeable future.