asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the cost to public funds of repairing damage to school properties caused by vandalism in the county districts of the Greater Manchester Metropolitan County over the previous three years.

My Department has no record of the cost of work carried out by local education authorities to repair damage to school properties by vandals.

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what plans he has to extend educational facilities in the county districts of the Greater Manchester Metropolitan County to children under the age of 5 years.

The provision of such educational facilities is a matter for local education authorities. The Government remain committed to increasing the supply of nursery education places nationally, especially for disadvantaged children, and are continuing to make building resources available to authorities for this purpose. I gave details of the 1977–78 allocation of resources to the Metropolitan Districts of Greater Manchester in my answer to a Question from my hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton, North-East (Mrs. Short) on 17th January 1977.—[Vol. 924, c. 71–72.]