Education Minister David Miliband has rejected criticism from within his party that his policies are potentially harmful to North-East pupils.

Mr Miliband was in the region yesterday to promote Labour's new five-year education strategy.

He declined to address criticisms head on from the Labour-run Durham County Council, but did make a general defence.

A special meeting was held at Durham County Council on Saturday after Councillor Neil Foster, the authority's cabinet member for education, said Mr Milliband's proposals had an urban bias that could harm education in rural County Durham.

Coun Foster said one of the initiatives for parents to select schools would pose massive transport problems in large, rural areas such as Country Durham, which already has a £14m school transport bill.

He said the policy addressed London-centred problems.

Mr Miliband, who was visiting Egglescliffe Secondary School, a specialist college for the arts at Eaglescliffe, near Stockton, did not answer that direct charge.

But he said: "Charles Clarke, Secretary of State for Education, is from rural Norfolk. These proposals will benefit all schools, not just urban ones, but every school in the country."

Mr Miliband also said he would be prepared to meet Durham County Council councillors and officials to discuss their concerns. The matter would also be debated at the Labour Party conference.

Later, a Government spokesman said that a key part of the new strategy would be for children to receive a more personalised education and better out of school services. It is also planned that every single school in the country becomes a specialised college.