Labour to force Commons vote on ending tax perks enjoyed by private schools

Tory MPs will be put on the spot over calls to end lucrative tax breaks for private schools and pour cash into hiring 6,500 extra state school teachers.

Labour will force a Commons vote today to strong-arm the Government into setting up a new committee to examine reforming the tax perks enjoyed by elite institutions.

The party wants to strip private schools of their charitable status, which it says would raise £1.7billion to pay for an additional 6,500 teachers.

Independent schools currently enjoy the perk which means they are exempt from charging VAT on fees. In England and Wales, they also get 80% relief on business rates.

But privately-educated Rishi Sunak has resisted the calls to remove the tax breaks, despite a recent poll finding almost two thirds (62%) of Brits back the move.

The PM, who attended Winchester College and sends his daughters to private school, previously accused Keir Starmer of “attacking the hardworking aspiration of millions of people in this country”.

It comes as official figures show that the number of teachers quitting the profession was outstripping the number of new recruits.

Government data showed there were 36,262 leavers in the teaching profession in 2020/21, compared with 34,394 embarking on Initial Teacher Training – a shortfall of 1,868, Labour said.

Shadow Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “ Labour believes that excellence is for everyone: that is why we would end tax breaks for private schools and invest that money in 6,500 additional teachers, reducing workloads and driving up to standards in all our state schools through our National Excellence Programme.

“Labour recognises that after thirteen years of Conservative economic mismanagement, which culminated in the Conservatives crashing the economy last year, tough choices must be made to protect public finances – but the choice facing MPs today is easy.

“Conservative MPs can either vote to deliver a brilliant state for education for every child or they vote against the interests of parents across this country who aspire for better for their children, especially those in the very regions their party pledged to ‘level up’.

Labour will use an opposition day debate to force a vote to set up a Fair Taxation of Schools and Education Standards committee.

It would be ordered to produce a report by July on reforming the tax status of private schools – with the aim of using the cash to fund teacher recruitment and training.

Labour also wants the money to fund a careers adviser in every secondary school and college, as well as paying for the introduction of two weeks’ worth of compulsory work experience.

The Mirror previously revealed that private schools attended by members of the Cabinet escaped charging £65million in VAT on their fees in 2021 due to their charitable status.