asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what percentage of schools referred to him for permission to proceed with closure or merger he has refused in each of the last 10 years; and how long from receipt to decision has been taken to issue the decision on average minimum time and maximum time taken in each of the years in question.

Information is not available in precisely the form reqested. The table shows the percentage of schools whose proposed closure was rejected by my right hon. Friend or his predecessors in the period from August 1980, when the Education Act 1980 came into force, and December 1986. Information about the time taken to decide closure proposals is not readily available, but my right hon. Friend has undertaken to decide proposals within six months of their publication, unless they present particular difficulties.