World Book Day 2021

That this House recognises 4th March 2021 as World Book Day in the UK and Ireland celebrating authors, illustrators, books and reading; further congratulates World Book Day for its 24th ‘World Book Day’ being held this year; notes that data shows that the UK ranks 17th for literacy among 34 OECD countries; that 1 in 11 disadvantaged children in the UK say that they don’t have a book of their own; that children born into communities with the most serious literacy challenges have some of the lowest life expectancies in England; that 1 in 4 children in England cannot read well by the age of 11 and pass the expected level of reading in their SATs; recognises the contribution of World Book Day Ltd in distributing their £1 book tokens which encourages policymakers, schools, teachers and young people to work together to ensure provisions are in place for early intervention when encouraging children to read; pays tribute to the staff and teachers in schools across the nation for their efforts in delivering quality literacy education to young people, and equipping them with the skills to reach their full potential.