Free Schools: rhetoric vs reality
In May I wrote for Left Foot Forward about the chronic shortage of primary school places in parts of England and how Michael Gove’s free school programme is making the problem even more acute.
Public Services
Lewisham Hospital campaigners win High Court battle
A High Court judge has quashed plans by the government to cut services at Lewisham hospital.
The idea of paying £25 to see a GP is cruel, but nothing is unthinkable under this government
Nye Bevan has been rolling in his grave so much this year I doubt he can remember whether he’s facing up or down. After NHS privatisation was finally sealed in April, the principal of free and publicly accountable universal healthcare is now being further undermined by talk of GPs charging patients for their appointments.
The devastating impact of moving school revealed
Moving school during the year rarely catches the headlines, but matters hugely to outcomes, especially to those who move many times.
Two thirds of public opposed to Royal Mail sell off, including majority of UKIP supporters
Two thirds of the public are opposed to the government’s sell off of Royal Mail, with over a third ‘strongly opposed’, according to a new YouGov poll.
Lewisham Hospital: A tribunal of the People, by the People and for the People
It is increasingly obvious that citizens worldwide are becoming disenchanted and disengaged with established government. This has been manifest in various forms of political and economic meltdown.
Five reasons the privatisation of Royal Mail is bad policy
Later today ministers will announce the final details of plans for the privatisation of Royal Mail.
Gove’s attack on public education is purely ideological
There has always been one asset the Conservative party has had over Labour since Margaret Thatcher’s election in 1979, and that is the sheer ruthlessness of their convictions.
UKIP wants to charge NHS patients to skip waiting times
UKIP leader Nigel Farage has endorsed an article by the party’s health spokesperson which calls for people to be allowed to pay to skip A&E waiting times.
Is Gove’s department about to hand a school site worth £10 million to the private sector?
The Department for Education (DfE) has been accused of seeking to transfer a school site worth £10 million pounds to the private sector without compensating local authorities.