Revenue raised through the levy will finance reductions in employers' National Insurance Contributions and expenditure on energy efficiency measures. The impact of the levy on any sector or business will depend on a number of factors such as employment levels, energy efficiency and the extent to which exempt energy is used. I would expect that as large employers the majority of local authorities will be net gainers from the levy. Where particular categories of maintained school are entitled to relief from the levy by virtue of their charitable status, local education authorities are free to reflect this in their school funding formulae if they so wish. Schools which have been found by Ofsted to be failing or likely to fail to provide an acceptable standard of education for their pupils require special measures.
Schools come in and out of special measures and serious weaknesses on a daily basis.
Details are in inspection reports published by the schools themselves and by Ofsted on its website. I shall place a list of schools currently on special measures showing their local education authority and parliamentary constituency in the Library. The Department does not hold a list of schools having serious weaknesses. More schools on special measures are being turned around and schools are on special measures for a shorter period. Twenty-seven schools were removed from special measures between September 1993 and May 1997 and 684 schools have been turned around since May 1997.