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What does the future of our children have in common with the Spreadable Fats (Marketing Standards) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007 or the Folly Lane, Downpatrick (Stopping- Up Order (Northern Ireland) 2007 or even the Animals and Animal Products (Import and Export) (Circuses and Avian Quarantine) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007?

Well these are all examples of matters that have been dealt with by our Assembly under its rules subject to negative resolution. Generally these things go through on the nod.

It's thought that if the Education Minister uses "regulation" rather than "legislation" to push through a new system of transfer to post-primary schools it could come the way of a "negative resolution". But if it does the DUP is waiting in order to insist that it must be forced to a cross community vote.

Sinn Fein sources acknowledge that such a vote will have to occur. But they add that the eleven plus is dead and buried so all parties must work together to create an alternative. If unionists try to re-introduce academic selection, Sinn Fein sources insist, they will find that nationalists use cross community voting to stop such a move in its tracks.

So if things work out this way the Assembly Examiner of Statutory Rules, Mr W. G. Nabney, may find himself dealing with more contentious matters than is the norm.

That's the Assembly route for the education changes. Of course the matter could also come to the Executive, should 3 ministers invoke the St Andrews procedures deeming it significant and controversial.

The Employment Minister Sir Reg Empey has vowed that he will bring Ms Ruane's announcement to the next Executive meeting. But it's not clear whether this discussion will be limited to his objections to the short notice he got of her announcement, or whether any Executive debate will deal with the wider educational issues at stake.

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That was what the DUP's Michelle McIlveen called Caitriona Ruane after the Education Minister announced her proposed shake up of our schools. Although I suspect from the way Sammy Wilson chortled at the joke that he had suggested it to Ms McIlveen before she road tested it on the Chamber.

Talking of road testing, Sammy Wilson missed his briefing with Ms Ruane on the changes because he got stuck in traffic. The Minister asssured the Education Committee chair that if her changes are adopted there will be less traffic on the roads as most children will be going to their local school.

Unmollified, Mr Wilson reckoned the statement contained a "spoonful of substance and a plateful of platitude".

The Ulster Unionists complained that such an important topic should have been brought to the Executive first. The Culture Minister Edwin Poots declared that he had not been informed. But Ms Ruane responded that the Minister had obviously not checked his post, as she had already written to him.

In terms of substance, the Minister appears to be leaving it up to local areas whether they have new junior high schools from 11 - 14, or whether they continue with 11 - 19 schools. But so far there are no maps of exactly what those areas will be, and no firm idea yet of who will sit on area based planning groups which will decide the structure of local schools. Despite this emphasis on geography, Ms Ruane denies she's setting up a "post code lottery".

The Bain review on education said that such educational areas should "as far as possible lie within a single local council area to facilitate links between education planning and community planning". But of course our council areas are still very much in flux.

Finally there was a sting in the tail of the Minister's statement when she warned grammar schools that if they adopt independent admissions arrangements the Education department will feel under no obligation to assist with funding. I'm not clear at the time of writing whether this refers to funding independent transfer tests or to funding the grammar schools themselves.

That threat prompted a predictable response from pro-grammar unionists. The DUP's Maurice Morrow warned that she would never get the changes through the Executive or the Assembly. There's no doubt this will test the St Andrews' rules on collective Executive action to destruction.

UPDATE: Since I made this entry Minister Ruane has clarified that her threat to the grammar schools is to refuse funding any independent tests they might adopt, not to stop general funding to the schools themselves. She hasn't clarified whether her proposed changes will be subject to a cross community vote, although her use of the word "regulation" implies that she believes she can push a new system through without recourse to legislation, which would require such a vote. This may be technically possible, but it's hard to imagine that the issue will not get escalated somewhere along the line.

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