He was speaking following the party’s submission to the Department of Education’s consultation on the latter.

Mr Mathison has said: “The creation of a single managing authority for all schools, and in turn seeing a reduction in bureaucracy within our education system, has long been a priority for Alliance.

“We have significant concerns that the Education Minister’s current proposals deviate from recommendations contained within the Independent Review of Education, do not offer a guaranteed pathway toward a single managing authority for all sectors, and are difficult to justify given the current financial crisis facing the department.

“At a time when the minister is repeatedly highlighting pressures his department is facing in simply meeting and fulfilling statutory obligations, we believe prioritisation should be given to the creation of a single managing authority, which would benefit the whole system.

“Our education system is already incredibly divided, and we fear these proposals will only further entrench these divisions. Instead, the minister should utilise this budget for the initial scoping work required to move towards the creation of a single management authority, which would be a welcome step towards wider integration in our education system.”