Friday, March 16, 2007

Fiona Millar - a tribute

Well done, Fiona, for your principled stance on ensuring that poor children, no matter how bright or hardworking, don't get to go to the sort of schools that 'we' send 'our' children to.

It's inspirational to see how brilliant upper-class, privately educated 'activists' like Tony Crosland and Shirley Williams persuaded the party of the working class to scrap the system which enabled poor but intelligent kids to get a decent education. You, our privately educated Prime Minister, our last privately educated education secretary Ruth Kelly, the privately educated education secretary before that Charles Clarke, and the leader of the Opposition (and former shadow education secretary), the privately educated David Cameron, present a front of steel against those uppity kids who just happen to be bright - even though their parents may be absolute nobodies who'd never get into the Groucho Club. I applaud you.

And it's working superbly - look at this BBC report.

"The proportion of UK university students from state schools has fallen, the latest official figures show. The percentage of young entrants to full-time first degree courses in 2003 who had attended state schools was 86.8%, down from 87.2% the year before."

There is one area of the UK where some of those working class kids sneak through, and take the places reserved for 'our sort'.

"Universities and colleges in Northern Ireland had the highest rates."

Thank heavens for your colleagues Jane Kennedy and Martin McGuinness (who in his previous role taught lessons to many people), who next year will abolish the 11-plus, and reduce still further the threat of provincial grammar-school types clogging up Carfax with their Argos bicycles in future !

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

She attended Camden School for Girls, a selective school and she studied Economics and Economic History at University College London

http://www.lordbothwell.co.uk/fiona.html

Anonymous said...

Ugly women often have a bossy, mean-spirited interest in controlling other people. I wonder why this very ugly woman thinks where other people's children go to school is her business? Who elected her to have these opinions and try to push her communist agenda?

I would say she looks like a cow, but cows actually have rather sweet faces. She sort of looks like a cliff face, or something.

Tokens are the only answer to a fair education for all children. If Fiona Miller wants to decide on the education of other people's children, she should try to get elected to something.

I wonder how her children feel about her not being married to their father.

How is it that NuLabour women are so excruciatingly ugly? Tessa Jowell's face makes me feel sick. And Cherie Blair! Whoaaaaah!!! Nightmare!

Anonymous said...

Another very ugly lefty woman who knows absolutely everything with astounding certainty is Mary Ann Sieghart.

Anonymous said...

What did you think about grammar schools when you were a hippy Laban?
You always seems to have strong opinions about them, hard to imagine you ever agreeing with the otherside.

Laban said...

I didn't really think one way or another, Dave.

It was only when my kids started primary and I discovered that learning by rote (aka times tables) and a lot of other stuff had gone out of the window, that I started worrying about what had happened to education in the last 20 years. Then I read Melanie Phillips 'All Must Have Prizes'.

Still had an open mind when the eldest went to comp. After 2 through comp I've sent the third private, using my share of the sale of my late mother's semi.

Malthebof said...

I cannot understand why politicians (and the teaching unions) are so opposed to selection by ability. It is the most egalitarian way of educating children. I attended a boys grammar school in Liverpool in the 1950s. Most of the pupils myself included were from the working class, the boys came from all over the city.
Malthebof

James Higham said...

Laban, you might like to check out the Focus this time round.

Anonymous said...

Verity,

Many women on the left are remarkably hard-faced and brittle. This type of woman does nothing for the reputation of British women and you don't need to conduct a sociological study into the reasons why many men are seeking partners abroad, for the je ne sais quoi Shilpa Shetty factor.

You've missed out Patricia Hewitt(such a dreadful voice too!). Margaret Thatcher despite being very ballsy never lost her femininity.

A picture speaks a thousand words. Ms Millar's mugshot tells me that she and Alistair Campbell are perfectly matched.

Laban,

I shall be doing everything in my power to make sure that my nephew goes private.