Conservative councillors will tonight demand the resignation of Labour councillor Alison Moore over the mass boycott of a Friern Barnet primary school.

They claim Ms Moore, as Barnet Council's cabinet member for education, bears ultimate responsibility for the botched handling of events at St John's C of E in Crescent Road.

Despite her seniority, Ms Moore was not named once in the official report into the boycott, published last week. It accused the council of failing to provide a duty of care in dealing with sex allegations against a five-year-old boy.

Councillor Vanessa Gearson, Tory education spokeswoman, accused her Labour counterpart of failing to tackle the most fundamental issues.

"The fact she is not mentioned once in a report that condemns the lack of leadership and guidance provided by the council in this case is most damning of all," she said.

Tories also blame Ms Moore for staffing problems in schools.

However, Ms Moore said this week she had no intention of resigning.

"There is no lack of responsibility and, no, I'm not going to resign," she said. "We shall be looking carefully at the report and taking appropriate action."

In response, Ms Moore intends to attack Tory education policies as 'extremist'.

"Conservative policies on education are an extremist recipe for falling standards and chaos in Barnet schools," she added.

"They have no credible plans for education in Barnet.

"Tory education plans are simply extremist, extremist, extremist."

Damian Green, the Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Skills, said he was considering raising the matter in Parliament.

"The failure of the council's administration to provide a duty of care towards the children at St John's reflects an appalling lack of responsibility and control of its own affairs," he said this week.

December 12, 2001 14:48

MATTHEW NIXSON