Shortage of Teachers

That this House notes the danger posed to the successful implementation of the national curriculum by the growing shortage of full-time, part-time and supply teachers in our classrooms and of teachers with qualifications appropriate to the subjects they teach; notes with concern suggestions that this danger can be averted by the introduction of regional differentials in teachers' pay which would merely shift shortages round the country without addressing the real problems which are the need to retain teachers already in schools, recruit sufficient graduates into teaching and encourage those who have left the profession to return by making teachers' salaries competitive with those paid to other professional groups, improving the inadequate level of resourcing which also threatens the success of the national curriculum, and improving teacher morale, a first step towards which would be restoration of their negotiating rights; and urges the Government to restore teachers' negotiating rights immediately, recognise the inadequacy of the ú600 million constraint on salary increases this year by funding in full an increase which would provide proper professional levels of pay, incentive allowances, and salaries for heads and deputies reflecting the importance of the job the profession does.