UK Politics

Sign up for a full digest of all the best opinions of the week in our Voices Dispatches emailSign up to our free weekly Voices newsletterSeven in 10 schools across England have been hit by cuts and can’t afford the same essential running costs as when the Conservatives came to power in 2010, new analysis shows.Some 13,000 schools across the country were subject to cuts over the period, with the worst hit – Dunraven Secondary School in Lambeth – seeing its real-terms spending power slashed by a total of £4,093,473 this year when compared to 2010.Hundreds of schools have lost over £1m in real-terms funding compared to 2010, according to calculations by the National Education Union (NEU). On an individual level, some 2,000 schools have lost over £1,000 in real-terms budget per pupil under the Tory government.Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson told The Independent: “I wish that I could commit to solving all of that if Labour wins the next election, and fixing it quickly, but I do have to be upfront about the scale of the challenge.“There will be that immediate investment of cash that we will make ending the tax breaks that private schools enjoy. But beyond that, we do need to get our economy growing so we have more to invest in our public services.”A Conservative spokesperson said: “Under Rishi Sunak and the Conservatives, we are boosting school funding to the highest level ever in real terms per pupil, driving up standards across the country up from 68 per cent of schools being rated good or outstanding under Labour to 90 per cent today with children in England named ‘Best in the West’ for reading.”Headteacher Claire works in an infant school in Milton Keynes. The school has lost out on £1,214 in real-terms funding for each pupil compared to 2010, according to NEU calculations, a dip of 13 per cent.Claire doesn’t believe that either political party is tackling the budget problem.“On a national level, I think funding just needs to be completely relooked at for schools… it doesn’t feel like it’s on the agenda for this election at all. I don’t feel that it’s a priority for any of the major parties.”The NEU has created the single-issue School Cuts social media campaign for the general election, which the union says has reached upwards of seven million people. The union is encouraging a letter-writing campaign to local candidates.The NEU calculates real-term cuts to schools by determining core funding and then outlining school expenditure each year, adjusting for inflation and other price shocks.Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the NEU, said that the impact of Conservatives’ education cuts is clearly visible in schools. “The truth is, 14 years of government cuts to schools have left education in crisis, and children are paying the price. We can all see the consequences: larger and larger class sizes, burned-out teachers leaving the profession, and buildings literally falling apart.”He added: “The government is failing a generation of children.”Government cuts to funding, in addition to a spike in children with special educational needs at mainstream schools, means that schools have been forced to make drastic decisions on what they can provide to students.Teachers like Claire are seeing that lack of resources widens the divide between children from high and low-income households, the latter of whom don’t get access to the same experiences, such as school trips.“What’s really worrying me is if we can’t give children access to resources and experiences, that’s going to affect their education. We won’t be able to close that privilege gap, between those that can and those that can’t. The cycle is just going to continue and repeat itself.”The above map from NEU data shows that schools have been impacted in all areas of the country, with most local schools facing budget squeezes in constituencies in the North West and South East.Schools in Slough, Bethnal Green and Stepney have lost close to £30m in real terms, comparing 2023-24 levels to 2010-11 levels. Meanwhile, London boroughs top the list of constituencies worst hit by cuts, with 17 having lost more than £1,000 on average per pupil.These take in constituencies such as Hackney North and Stoke Newington, Clapham and Brixton Hill, Tottenham, and the Cities of London and Westminster.Claire’s school in Milton Keynes is struggling with monetary pressures on all sides. Her only avenue for major costs like leaks and asbestos checks is the local council, which says it doesn’t have the money either. “It’s like a brick wall, basically,” she said.The budget is so small that the school can no longer afford to pay the caretaker. Now, teachers and office staff take out the bins themselves, perform health and safety checks, and pick up essential items after school. In an effort to get by, Claire says that the school relies on some goodwill: volunteer groups have come to paint the building, for example, and teachers’ husbands have even done repairs when needed. “Saying it out loud, I think, oh my God. We just get on with it,” said Claire. In a recent report, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said that “no real-terms growth in school spending per pupil over 14 years is historically unusual”.Over her 11 years at the school, Claire has noticed a huge drop in resources and budget, particularly when it comes to IT and school trips. “When I first started, we had a full suite of computers in the ICT room. The budget was in a surplus. We had an extension done at the time to make one of the classrooms bigger. There were significant pots of money, and we just don’t have that luxury any more. It’s just gone.”The ratio of pupils to teachers has gone down, too; and staff are juggling multiple roles, without having the pay or qualifications to match.“Lots of children are coming into school with significant speech and language difficulties. The services are not there in the NHS to support that. So we’ve got teaching assistants being expected to act like speech and language therapists when they’re not qualified to do that.”She added: “Schools and teachers are becoming almost social workers, to support families that are living in poverty.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA black journalist was removed from a Reform UK rally by security guards saying they “didn’t know” why he was not allowed to attend the event.Femi Oluwole, 34, was turned away from Nigel Farage’s “biggest campaign rally” in Birmingham on Sunday despite showing security his press card.In footage, a security guard can be heard saying: “Unfortunately sir, you’ve been told you cannot come into the venue today.”When Mr Oluwole asked why, he said: “I don’t know. They’ve just told us you’re not allowed into the venue. I’ve been told you can’t come in.” Two security guards then physically escorted Mr Oluwole from the building.Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaking at his party’s rally in Birmingham on Sunday More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email A former Tory cabinet minister has accused Rishi Sunak of helping to ensure a large Labour victory as the Tory blame game escalates before even a single vote has been cast.John Redwood hit out at what he called the ‘One Nation leadership’ of his party. He said that together with Nigel Farage’s Reform, if they polls are correct, they will “visit on us” a Labour government “that may have a lower vote share than Labour led by Jeremy Corbyn… but have a large majority of MPs giving it a lot of potential power.” However, that would only hold if Labour “can keep its party together”, he added.Sir John Redwood More

Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UKSign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Sunday dismissed suggestions that his party was headed to defeat in the July 4 general election, using one of his final televised appearances to defend the Conservatives’ record on the economy.Sunak told the BBC that he believed he’d still be in power by the end of the week, despite opinion polls that have found the Conservatives trailing far behind the opposition Labour Party of Keir Starmer.“I’m fighting very hard,” Sunak said. “And I think people are waking up to the real danger of what a Labour government means.”While he acknowledged that the last few years “had been difficult for everyone,’’ Sunak declared it was “completely and utterly wrong” to suggest that Britain’s place in the world has diminished since Brexit.“It’s entirely wrong, this kind of declinist narrative that people have of the U.K. I wholeheartedly reject,” he said. “It (the U.K.) is a better place to live than it was in 2010.’’After 14 years of Conservative-led governments, many voters blame the party for Britain’s cost-of-living crisis, long waiting lists for health care, high levels of immigration and the dislocations caused by Britain’s departure from the European Union.Sunak, who became prime minister in October 2022, has tried to silence his critics by arguing that his policies have begun to solve those problems and warning that Starmer, the Labour leader, would raise taxes if his party wins the election. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailTikTok suspended the livestream of a Reform UK rally for around half an hour on Sunday, the social media platform has confirmed.The “temporary suspension” of the stream on Reform UK leader Nigel Farage’s account was due to a “moderation error”, a spokesperson for the site said.His access to TikTok’s “Live” feature has since been restored.Mr Farage addressed thousands of Reform UK supporters at Birmingham’s National Exhibition Centre on Sunday afternoon, along with other members of the party.People complained that the livestream cut out as Reform UK politician Ann Widdecombe addressed the crowd.Ann Widdecombe speaking during a Reform UK General Election campaign launch (Lucy North/PA) More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email Long-serving Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte urged his country to support Ukraine and international cooperation in his final address to his compatriots Sunday, as an inward-looking new government is set to take over the Netherlands in two days.“It is crucial that our country is embedded in the European Union and NATO. Together we are stronger than alone. Especially now,” the 57-year-old Rutte said from his office in The Hague. After leading the country for 14 years, he will take his experience with consensus-building to Brussels, where he will take over as NATO’s new secretary-general later this year.He stressed the need to continue support for Ukraine, “for peace there and security here.” The new government, expected to take office on Tuesday, has pledged to maintain assistance. But far-right populist Geert Wilders, whose party won the largest block of seats in last year’s election, has expressed pro-Russia views and Kremlin backers cheered his victory at the polls. Rutte described the MH17 tragedy in 2014 as “perhaps the most drastic and emotional event” during his tenure. The passenger jet was shot down over eastern Ukraine as it traveled from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, killing all 298 passengers and crew, including 196 Dutch citizens.A Dutch court convicted two Russians and a pro-Moscow Ukrainian in 2022 of involvement in the downing of the Boeing 777. Known for cycling to meetings and his dedication to politics, Rutte highlighted his country’s positive attributes. “There is no war here, you can be who you are, we are prosperous,” he said in the 12-minute speech. He acknowledged that there had been low points during his tenure, including a child benefits scandal that wrongly labeled thousands of parents as fraudsters.Wearing a white shirt with several of the top buttons undone, Rutte said that his time in office had added some “gray hairs and wrinkles” to his appearance. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailAs you drive into Clacton there are scores of pro-Farage Reform posters asking people to “save Britain” in what is becoming a struggle for the soul of right-of-centre politics.Only as you travel out to the more genteel areas of the constituency, like Frinton, do they give way to “I stand with Giles” boards. But Giles Watling, the Tory MP defending his Clacton seat, may be the only Conservative candidate in this election with a wide coalition of support across the country willing him to win.In the wake of the Channel 4 News expose of the Reform Clacton team and the racist comments by one of the canvassers Andrew Parker, Watling received a telephone call from Tony Blair’s former spin doctor Alastair Campbell, in normal circumstances no lover of Tories.Giles Watling is defending his Clacton seat for the Tories More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailCandidates can turn up just about anywhere on the campaign trail, but several families were shocked when Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg walked into their children’s first holy communion. Sir Jacob had permission to appear with his family and a film crew for a mass at St Joseph and St Teresa Church in Somerset earlier this month, but while a sign had been put up, the families of some dozen children said they did not know he would be in attendance.Parents, including Gideon Davey, whose 10-year-old daughter Ottilie received her first holy communion, initially believed the film crew was there on behalf of the church.“This spiritual and deeply personal occasion will forever be stained by a selfish and self-promoting stunt,” he said.The reason for the film crew accompanying the Conservative candidate for North East Somerset and Hanham has been kept under wraps. Earlier this month it emerged Mr Rees-Mogg was in talks with Discovery+ over a fly-on-the-wall documentary. Gideon Davey with his daughter after she received her First Holy Communion during a church service attended by Jacob Rees-Mogg and his film crew More