Education impasse 'can be broken'

The issue of the 11-plus has proved controversial

The deadlock over post-primary education can be broken, the deputy first minister has said.

Speaking on Inside Politics Martin McGuinness said the DUP and Sinn F�in had surmounted other challenges in the past.

He said their experienced negotiators were capable of finding a compromise.

"There's going to have to be some lateral thinking applied to all of this, there's going to have to be some considerable brainstorming," he said.

"And I believe that we are capable if there's a will to deal with this issue we are capable of engaging in a real debate, discussion, dialogue and indeed negotiation to take this forward."

On Friday, Education Minister Caitr�ona Ruane faced the assembly's education committee about her plans for primary school transfer.

She aims to extend academic selection for three years before ending it.

It will take the form of one hour-long test of literacy and numeracy, and it will be held in a grammar school.

However, the minister faced sharp questions from unionist and SDLP MLAs whilst the DUP said her plans would not be agreed by the assembly.

Friday's committee hearing followed a contentious meeting of the executive during which three separate proposals for progress were rejected.

First Minister Ian Paisley said Ms Ruane's plans to reform academic selection could not go ahead without DUP and executive support.

Thursday's executive meeting ended without a full discussion of the plans.

Ms Ruane told the executive there were parties "who were anti-change in relation to education".

The minister's proposals have been criticised by grammar schools who said their acceptance of them would be "like turkeys voting for Christmas".

But Frank Bunting of teachers' union, INTO, said the plan was a sensible and pragmatic roadmap out of the impasse.

Last December, Ms Ruane announced the transfer test, commonly known as the 11-plus, would come to an end in 2008.

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