I believe I am guilty of taking the latest Conservative proposals on education out of their context. As a result, I made the mistake of regarding them as an aberration; a singular folly.
However, I should have examined these proposals in the round of their ‘Fair Deal for Britain’:
“The Conservative Party’s fair deal for everyone is built on a unifying commitment to ensure that no-one is held back and no-one is left behind…”
Seen in that context, a return to old socialist education policies makes perfect sense. After all, in a society where you won’t be able to turn round without running smack dab into the dead hand of the state, shoving you along a line of pre-determined ‘fairness’, you cannot expect higher education to be the exception, can you.
Just who is advising the Conservative Party these days? Who was it that convinced Iain Duncan Smith that Clintonesque pain-feeling was the wave of the future? What premium do they think they will derive out of being Labour-lite? What, precisely, is the unique selling point of socialism with a Tory twist?
If I thought it likely that I would get any answers I would put those questions on the back of a postcard and send it off to Tory HQ. As it is, I don’t think I’ll bother. I’m too busy adjusting myself to the next 20 years of New Labour.
Hey, cheer up! It could be worse – your country could be slowly abandoning sovereignty to thinly disguised Franco-German economic colonialism… oh, wait, never mind.
When I saw this on the news I really groaned.
There is one outside possibility: you can announce that you are “abolishing top-up fees” while still intending to keep a voucher-like system of additional payments (funded by central goverment, but with recipients chosen by the service-user); the chorus of disapproval from Vice-Chancellors on Newsnight made me think that this was a possibility. But I’m not holding my breath.
I rather think the fat middle-aged “ex-Tory” on Newsnight had it right when she said “Who care? It’s not the real world. This is never going to happen anyway”.
David,
The Tories abandoned their founding principals at least thirty years ago, and have gradually been getting more and more socialist with each passing year.
Even Mrs T favoured big, centralised government, and if I remember correctly, she ‘re-organised’ both the Dept. of Ed., and the NHS., and is probably known as much for ‘throwing the baby out with the bath-water’, as for her so-called ‘taming’ of the Trade Unions
In order to get her ideas past her own Cabinet and back benchers she had to make concessions to the left of the party.
Even before her time in office, Heath often gave the impression of being no more than a right of centre Socialist.
We have had two socialist parties, (three, if you count the Libs.), for so long now, I am surprised that people are only now realising the fact. We only have a choice of ‘bad, worse, and worst’.
It is so easy to be a Socialist MP, just give and spend more of taxpayers money, and they will vote for you. Management?, dont worry about that, if the Opposition should get voted in, then the mess they find is so hard to clean up, that the austerity and discipline needed will ensure they dont get voted in again.
Tories!, sorry they, still look like outsiders. The answer, – bring back the Whigs, and more power to the Parish Council. (are there still such entities?).
It’s a Fair Cop, Guv’. Ya got me. I have no principled defence to offer you on this new Tory “re-launch”. Though I’ll try to think of an unprincipled one for you, on Johnathan Pearce’s post above, on the Bland leading the Blind. Though the will is sapping! 🙂
How ironic (and yet strangely appropriate) that the Tories should have named their new policy initiative “The Fair Deal”.
No doubt IDS or his advisors know that this was the name given to President Truman’s domestic program in 1953 which included:
“a full employment law, a national health insurance plan, extended social security, aid to education, civil rights legislation, public housing, universal military training, an increase in the minimum wage, and a fair employment practices committee.””
(I posted this comment under Alex Singleton’s post, but it probably belongs here)