When politicians are asked questions in Parliament, particularly questions that they have been asked many times before, in written form, there seems to be no excuse for the answer to be poorly researched or only partial in its content. These performances, whilst a great deal more serious than rehearsed theatre, are intended for public consumption as well as for the small number of people who are privileged enough to be able to ask the questions. This means they should be effetcive. If over time the answers continue to be half hearted, then there must be a way of challenging the people involved. A couple of months ago I wrote several blogs because the same question was being asked by a number of MPs. One of those was Nicholas Soames, who is MP for Mid Sussex and a neighbour of Henry Smith who on 20th March received an answer to his almost identical question. The question this time was “What steps his Department has taken to increase the take-up of STEM subjects.”

The question is directed at Nick Gibbs who is a near neighbour of both men and the Minister responsible for Schools. This time the answer was a holding answer. What this means is that Nick Gibbs cannot be bothered to answer every question, and when he gets a similar question to one he has had numerous times before, he reissues an old answer. The answer focuses on two elements. The first is the recruitment of new teachers, particularly those wanting to teach Maths and Science. The second part of the answer relates to technical examinations, known as T Levels which won’t be available to most students until 2022 at the earliest. So in both cases the impact of the answer will not be felt for five years or more. The problem with this answer is that Henry Smith is asking about something that needs a more immediate context.

There are answers that Nick Gibb could give. However he seems oblivious to them. For example across Sussex we are in the middle of a series of events called ‘Big Bang‘ which invites school age children to meet businesses and Higher and Further Education providers to get a grasp of what is on offer for students who study STEM subjects. As it happens there was such an event in Eastbourne on Tuesday, close enough to both mens constituencies to get a mention, and at the beginning of March there was one in Nick Gibbs constituency which he was invited to and did not bother attending. Then there are men and women who are working voluntarily to promote their experience within STEM subjects, they are known as STEM Ambassadors, and they are invited to visit Schools to talk to students and Schools as a whole. These men and women are located across the whole of the UK and their role could be effectively promoted by MPs asking one another questions. Another example is the national “First Lego League” referred to as the ultimate science and technology challenge which holds one of its heats in Henry Smith’s constituency. All of these initiatives and no doubt others that I am unaware of are matters that Nick Gibb should be proud to promote, every time he gets asked about how in our nation, while we wait the five years for the new teachers to emerge and the T levels to become open to students. The big question is how to get this message through to these people who seem willing to go through the motions of asking questions and receiving answers, but not very good at paying attention to what is happening on their doorsteps!