Furious Schools Minister tears into dad who beat his term-time holiday ban to take kid to Disney World
Nick Gibb: 'There's no circumstance in which a trip to Disney World can be regarded as educational'
A FURIOUS Tory minister has torn into a dad who beat his term-time ban to take his kids to Disney World.
Earlier this month the High Court backed Jon Platt after he refused to pay a £120 fine for taking his daughter out of school without permission.
But sore loser Schools Minister Nick Gibb was in no mood to take the defeat lying down, warning the ruling posed a “significant threat” to keeping kids in school and paving the way for mass truancy.
Turning his fire directly on the 44-year-old father, he blasted: "There's no circumstance in which a trip to Disney World can be regarded as educational."
He added: "The need to take time off school in exceptional circumstances is important but there are no special circumstances where a 10-day family holiday to Disney World should be allowed to trump the importance of school.
"The rules must and should apply to everyone. This is about social justice.
"When parents with the income available take their children out of school go to Florida, it sends a message to everyone that school education is not important."
He vowed that the Government will do "everything in its power" to stop children being taken out of school for unauthorised term-time holidays after a High Court ruled in Mr Platt’s favour earlier this month.
The Department for Education is now considering changing the law to prevent a breakout of mass truancy in schools.
Mr Platt had been fined by the Isle of Wight Council for taking his family on a 10-day trip to the US, including a visit to Disney World, without the permission of his daughter’s school.
Since the victory, travel agents have reported a surge in holiday bookings, with parents now emboldened to challenge fines and tempted by cheaper holiday prices.
Mr Gibb rejected arguments that term-time holidays do not affect a child’s education, telling MPs "you can't understand why World War One ended if you don't know why it started".
He said: "I do not believe that we should be returning to the Dickensian world where the needs of industry and commerce take precedence over the education of children."
Mr Gibb said the Government will outline its "next steps" on potentially strengthening the law relating to term-time absences once it receives the High Court's written judgment.
"But the House should be assured that we will seek to take whatever measures are necessary to give schools and local authorities the power and clarity to ensure that children attend school when they should," he said.