KEY parts of Tony Blair’s education and health reforms are to be pushed through without legislation, as ministers strive to avoid a repeat of their humiliating rebuff over the anti-terrorism laws, The Times has learnt.

Self-governing trust schools freed from local authority control, the centrepiece of Ruth Kelly’s education White Paper, are to be set up under existing legislation, avoiding a Commons vote.

Proposals in the forthcoming health White Paper for the controversial reorganisation of primary care trusts, which could involve district nurses, therapists and chiropodists being transferred to the private sector, will not require a Bill. Although Patricia Hewitt, the Health Secretary, has already delayed the plans, they could eventually go ahead under existing powers.

The moves are designed to reduce parliamentary confrontation as much as possible while pressing on with Mr Blair’s “legacy” programme. They emerged yesterday as ministers took stock of the 31-vote reverse over the 90-day detention period in the Terrorism Bill. The Cabinet agreed that it had been right to push the issue to a vote, as ministers lined up publicly to rally behind Mr Blair, whose authority has been undermined by the reverse.

Ministers also agreed that, with a hard core of rebels determined to vote against Mr Blair on any reforming issue, they would have to work harder in explaining future legislation to backbenchers before it was presented to the House. They accept privately that on important Bills on education and cracking down on abuse of incapacity benefit they will probably need Conservative support to get them through.

Much of the education White Paper will be controversial and require legislation. But ministers have discovered that they can bring in the trust schools under the School Standards and Framework Act 1998, which turned grant-maintained schools into foundation schools without the funding advantages and selection-by-ability provisions of their predecessors.

When the White Paper was published only two weeks ago it promised that there would be legislation for a statutory procedure to become trust schools. After a careful study to reduce the issues that may cause trouble in Parliament, however, ministers and officials have concluded that the new power is no longer needed. The Bill will include safeguards under which trusts can be removed if they prove to be unsuitable. The attempt to bypass Parliament may anger Labour MPs but there are several other aspects of the Bill that some may oppose, including a provision to place a duty on local authorities to respond to representations from parents.

As the Cabinet swung behind Mr Blair, Charles Clarke accepted personal responsibility for failing to persuade the Commons to endorse the key proposal to allow police to detain terrorist suspects for up to 90 days without charge.

Gordon Brown declared his full support for Mr Blair and said that his rushed return to London had been worthwhile. “I think I helped get a number of people to vote for the Government who otherwise would not have done so,” he said. But he also had a warning for Labour MPs, saying that he expected their support on legislation implementing public service reforms. Asked if he thought that the Government would have to rely on Tory support to get its agenda through the Commons, he said: “No, I think we will get our agenda through with Labour support. The people who stood on the manifesto have a duty to get the manifesto through.”

At the Cabinet meeting Mr Blair spoke of a “worrying gap” between MPs who rejected the police demand for 90 days and the reality of the terrorist threat. He met senior police officers, including Sir Ian Blair, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, and security service representatives at Downing Street for talks described by No 10 as routine and pre-arranged. The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said that a presentation at the meeting had been “sobering ”.

• Five Iraqis considered to be a serious threat to national security are free today because there was insufficient time to gather evidence against them after they had been arrested, police and security sources disclosed yesterday. The case was highlighted by senior police officers in briefings with Mr Clarke, as part of the attempt to raise the detention-without-charge period from 14 to 90 days.

  Police held the ten men for twelve days on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism but did not have enough evidence to bring charges within fourteen days. Five were released and five were handed to the immigration authorities and are awaiting deportation.

  TROUBLE AHEAD

  Blair’s difficult months

  Next week ID cards
  End of the month pension review by Adair Turner
  First week in December Pre-Budget Review
  December smoking
  December welfare reform
  January Health White Paper
  February Education Bill

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