The everyday blog of Richard Bartle.
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2:00pm on Tuesday, 24th September, 2019:
Comment
The Labour Party Conference has backed a motion which effectively abolishes public schools (which, for obscure historical reasons, is what the UK calls what are called private schools elsewhere).
I'm in favour of this. Public schools give a great advantage to those who go to them, which is evidenced by the fact that if they didn't then rich people wouldn't send their kids there. I can see the argument for having boarding schools be fee-paying, because some people do have to work abroad in places where the education system may not be up to a decent standard (diplomats, soldiers, criminals on the run from justice). Giving some people such a head start that they end up taking half the jobs in the media, judiciary and upper eschelons of the armed services is, however, grossly unfair on the rest of us. I don't care if you're paying twice (once through your taxes and once through your bank account): it's just not right.
Unsurprisingly, many of the people at the top of the Labour party benefitted from a private education. These have been called out as hypocrites in the press. I actually disagree: children have no say in where they're sent to school, and it's not their fault if they wound up at a posh prep school. Criticising people for where their parents had them educated is like criticising them for anything else over which they had no power. It's what happens afterwards that's important.
Labour high-ups who sent their own children to public schools are the hypocrites here.
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Copyright © 2019 Richard Bartle (richard@mud.co.uk).