Parliamentary committee throws plans for further education into disarray

Now the government's plans for extending the school leaving age may have been thrown into disarray

A parliamentary committee has ruled that

using criminal law to force teenagers to stay on in schools was "potentially disproportionate".

The bill that is currently going through Parliament provides for young people who have less than two A levels being forced to participate in some sort of training or education with enforcement orders for those that don't

"The duty to participate in education or training raises issues under article eight [of the European convention on human rights] (the right to respect for private life, which can include aspects of an individual's working life and employment
"Such rights may only be interfered with when it is necessary and proportionate to do so, in pursuit of a legitimate aim.
"Whilst we do not deny the potential benefits to some young people and the economy of their continuing in education and training, in our view, relying on criminal coercion for its enforcement is potentially disproportionate."