JAMIE Oliver met Tony Blair today at a "breakfast summit" where the TV chef backed government moves to improve school dinners - and praised the food served at No 10 Downing Street.

Campaigning Jamie, who vowed to remain "the voice of the dinner lady," said he had not had time to have the breakfast offered by Mr Blair but it was "healthy" and included fruit juices.

Jamie has led a high-profile drive to improve food standards in schools and delivered a 271,000-signature petition backing his cause to Downing Street.

The government has announced a minimum spend of 50p for primary school meals and 60p for secondary

school meals. Many parents were shocked to learn from Jamie's recent TV programme, Jamie's School Dinners, that schools spend only 37p on a typical meal.

His Feed Me Better internet petition demands include qualifications for dinner ladies, more money to be spent on meals for children and more time for catering staff to prepare meals.

He said outside No 10 before he met Mr Blair that the response "from the public and parents and pupils and teachers has been phenomenal.

And he promised: "I think I am going to stay very much removed from the government, or any government, and I'm going to try to remain the voice of the dinner lady and the parent."

Following the meeting with Mr Blair and Ruth Kelly, an excited Jamie said he thought there was "good energy" from the government behind the campaign.

Signatures

He said he had been told the government planned to "do up" every school kitchen over the next five to 10 years.

He said: "The old adrenalin is pumping. I'm quite emotional, quite excited."

He said he had expected support to improve school meal standards because it was important and it had touched him.

England should not be "the embarrassment of Europe" with regard to its food and school meals, he said. The response to the petition has surprised Jamie who originally expected only about 20,000 signatures.

The leader of one of the biggest teaching unions has said that the chef should be knighted for his campaign to improve school food.

Steve Sinnott, general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, also called on ministers to increase the amount spent on food for a school meal to é1.

Mr Sinnott told the NUT conference in Gateshead: "Don't you think the words `Sir Jamie Oliver' have a certain ring to them?

"The government's recognition of the shocking diets of many of our young people is very welcome.

"I call on the government to commit itself to spending é1 a day on school meals. A pound on the plate should be a campaign slogan that all political parties could sign up to."

Ruth Kelly has already promised Labour would bring in minimum nutritional standards from September next year.

From this September, processed food such as sausages, cakes and burgers will have to meet tougher rules designed to cut their levels of salt, sugar and fat.

Headteachers' leaders welcomed the government's promise of new money.

David Hart, of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: "he government has at last recognised schools won't be able to provide healthy meals unless there is greater investment by government and local authorities.