Small primary schools with under 100 pupils should not be closed because they are of ‘incalculable worth’, according to the Labour party.

The comment, from Labour MP Loes Ypma and party chairman Hans Spekman, are in line with the views of the Christian Democrats and ChristenUnie.

All three parties have now spoken out against recommendations from the education council that hundreds of small primary schools should be closed.

The council calculated that a school with 23 pupils, currently the minimum requirement, costs €247,000 a year, while a class with 25 pupils in the Randstad costs €92,000.

‘Every one can see these figures are biased and give a manipulated image of reality,’ the Labour members said.