Government plans to “dumb down” school curriculum
“Ministers have been accused of ‘education vandalism’ after tearing up Tory reforms aimed at making the curriculum more rigorous. In proposals announced tomorrow, Labour will reduce GCSE exams, simplify primary school tests and scrap a drive against ‘Mickey Mouse’ subjects. Other plans due to be unveiled by Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson include decolonising the curriculum to boost ‘diversity’, and a new focus on ‘climate change’. The reforms, which undo a raft of flagship Tory policies, have been met with glee by the teaching unions. However, Laura Trott, Shadow Education Secretary, said: “Labour’s idea of boosting social mobility is to teach primary school children about climate change instead of making sure they can read, write and add up properly.” – Daily Mail
- All schoolchildren in England to be taught financial literacy – Financial Times
- More diversity and fewer exams at GCSE – The Times
- Starmer’s education guru who is fixated with race, class and gender – Daily Mail
- England curriculum should focus less on exams and more on life skills, finds review – The Guardian
- I played violin with Fatboy Slim. Why every child should learn music – Keir Starmer, The i
>Yesterday: Davida Ademuyiwa on Comment: Extra tuition is the forgotten victim of Labour’s VAT raid on education
Budget 1) Reeves lays ground for income tax rise
“Rachel Reeves has signalled that she is prepared to break Labour’s manifesto and become the first chancellor to raise income tax in 50 years as she pledged to put “national interest” ahead of “political expediency”. The chancellor used a speech in Downing Street to warn voters that “we will all have to contribute” and “do our bit” to bolster Britain’s economic security and ensure it has a “bright future”. However, ministers warned that any move to raise income tax could prove fatal to Sir Keir Starmer’s premiership and result in Labour losing some voters “forever”. She would become the first chancellor to raise the basic rate of income tax since Labour’s Denis Healey.” – The Times
- Unusual speech did nothing to calm fears of destructive tax rises – Leader, The Times
- Labour set to hit middle class earners with £60 billion tax bomb to plug Budget gaps, top economists predict – Daily Mail
- Chancellor to urge insurance bosses to increase investment in London – Financial Times
- Reform UK leader issues warning over tax rises after Chancellor’s speech – Daily Express
- Bond markets are winning the Budget stand-off – Financial Times
>Today: Columnist Daniel Hannan: Reeves is going to hike taxes – and that will only make our crisis worse
Budget 2) Treasury “draws up plans to scrap fuel duty relief”
“Rachel Reeves is considering scrapping the 5p cut in fuel duty in the budget in light of concerns that retailers are failing to pass on the benefit to motorists. The Treasury has drawn up plans to end the relief, which was first introduced in 2022 to help people with the cost of living after oil prices soared following Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine. It was billed as a temporary measure but has been renewed by successive chancellors to assuage concerns about a motorists’ backlash.” – The Times
- Plan to hike betting taxes on slot machines would have ‘devastating impact’ on UK’s pubs – The Sun
- Reeves considers cut to green levies in effort to reduce cost of energy bills – The Guardian
Budget 3) Neil: It’s not credible for the Chancellor to blame everyone else for the high borrowing
“High borrowing costs are also constraining her plans, she complains. We are indeed paying a ton of money – over £100 billion a year – in interest to service the national debt. But the cost of borrowing has risen under her watch and I don’t remember Labour in opposition ever telling the Tories to borrow less. Indeed, quite the reverse. During the so-called austerity years of the Tory-Lib Dem Coalition and the pandemic under Johnson, Labour consistently urged the government to spend and borrow more. And if she really thought we were borrowing too much, why did she borrow an extra £30billion in her first Budget – along with an extra £40billion in taxes which she had pledged not to levy in the election campaign?” – Andrew Neil, Daily Mail
Budget 4) Finkelstein: If Reeves increases income tax she will have to resign
“In 1967 when the Labour government under Harold Wilson decided to devalue the pound, its chancellor, James Callaghan, resigned immediately. It wasn’t the end of his political career, of course. Indeed, he didn’t leave the government, becoming home secretary. But he saw he couldn’t remain at the Treasury. Callaghan had been fighting for three years to avoid devaluing the pound. The fight had required him to assure everyone over and over again that devaluation wasn’t going to be necessary and that he was dead set against it. It wasn’t possible to blithely keep going after that.” – Daniel Finkelstein, The Times
- I won’t let Reeves get away with breaking her word again – Mel Stride, Daily Telegraph
- This is the beginning of the end for both Reeves and Starmer’s Government – Philip Johnston, Daily Telegraph
- Reeves brutally weaponised my mini-Budget. Now she is paying the price – Kwasi Kwarteng, The i
- She’s going to destroy her political career – James Baxter-Derrington, Daily Telegraph
- The UK tax system is a mess. These are priorities for Reeves to reform – Martin Wolf, Financial Times
- Only time will tell if Labour can recover after twice breaking its promises to voters – Leader, The Sun
Budget 5) Badenoch: The Chancellor thinks the state knows best
“Investors are saying they can’t trust a Chancellor who borrows and spends with such little discipline. Farmers have made it very clear that the Family Farm Tax is going to devastate their industry. But Rachel thinks the state knows best, and the rest of us should just keep quiet and pay the bill. That’s the big difference between the Conservatives and all the other parties – Labour, Liberal Democrats, Greens and Reform. Their answer to every problem is more government. We know the answer is more freedom – for businesses to hire, for people to work, for families to keep more of what they earn. Only the Conservatives are committed to ensuring that we get on top of public spending.” – Kemi Badenoch, Daily Express
- Badenoch brands Rachel Reeves’ pre-Budget speech ‘one long waffle bomb’ – The Independent
>Today:
>Yesterday:
Mamdani elected Mayor of New York City
“Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic socialist who has promised to make New York City affordable again, has won the race to be the city’s next mayor. Mamdani will be the youngest mayor in more than a century and the first Muslim to lead the most populous city in the country. His rise to lead a hub of global capitalism alarmed many business leaders in the city and astonished even some of his supporters, who watched as a previously unknown state assemblyman became a force in American politics. On Tuesday, the 34-year-old carried 50.4 per cent of the vote with 90 per cent of precincts reporting, outpacing the independent candidate Andrew Cuomo at 41.6 per cent and Republican Curtis Sliwa with 7.1 per cent.” – The Times
ECHR “ready to discuss legal changes”
“The political head of the body that oversees the European Convention on Human Rights has told the BBC that it is “absolutely ready” to discuss reforms amid pressure from the UK and other countries over migration. Speaking exclusively to the BBC, Alain Berset, the secretary general of the Council of Europe, predicted that quitting international human rights law would leave the UK “isolated” on the world stage. He acknowledged human rights laws may need to “change or adapt” and the institutions, whose creation was largely led by the British after World War Two, remained crucial to peace, security and justice.” – BBC
MPs question BBC Chairman over misleading editing of Trump speech…
“The BBC has “serious questions to answer”, a cross-party group of MPs has said, following reports that a Panorama documentary misled viewers by editing a speech by US President Donald Trump. The Telegraph said it had seen, external an internal memo suggesting the programme edited two parts of Trump’s speech together so he appeared to explicitly encourage the Capitol Hill riots of January 2021. The House of Commons culture, media and sport committee said it had written to BBC chairman Samir Shah to ask what action is being taken over the concerns raised in the memo.” – BBC
- The BBC has just signed its own death warrant – Allison Pearson, Daily Telegraph
- I’ve got news for the BBC bosses who think they’ll get away with fabricating a damaging Trump quote: A huge storm is coming. – Stephen Glover, Daily Mail
- BBC must explain how it plans to correct liberal bias – Roger Mosey, The Times
…Badenoch says “heads should roll”
“The BBC is facing calls to sack its director-general and other senior executives following accusations of “serious and systemic” editorial bias. The Telegraph has published revelations from a leaked dossier written by a whistleblower and sent to BBC board members that details numerous instances of apparent bias at the broadcaster. The examples include a Panorama documentary that doctored a Donald Trump speech and that BBC Arabic “minimised Israeli suffering” in its coverage of the war with Hamas to “paint Israel as the aggressor”. Kemi Badenoch, the Leader of the Opposition, said “heads should roll” over the “absolutely shocking” disclosures.” – Daily Telegraph
“Sicknote Britain” costing the country over £200 billion a year
“Sicknote Britain is costing the country more than £200billion a year as the UK slides into an ‘avoidable crisis’. A new report by former John Lewis boss Sir Charlie Mayfield lays bare the impact of the growing problem on taxpayers, the NHS and the wider economy. It urges an overhaul of the ‘fit note’ system used to sign workers off and calls for employers to do more to support those with ill health and help them return.” – Daily Mail
- Britain pays price for scarring effect of sickness crisis – Fraser Nelson, The Times
Chagos deal delayed after Labour pulls bill
“Sir Keir Starmer’s Chagos islands deal has been delayed after the threat of defeat in the Lords. Ministers have been forced to pause legislation to ratify the treaty after a Conservative peer submitted an amendment to make the Government consult the Chagossians before going ahead. On Tuesday morning the Government said the bill would not go to committee stage as planned, meaning it will be delayed.” – Daily Telegraph
Other political news
- France is stalling deportations ‘to squeeze extra cash from UK’ – The Sun
- University in free speech row over demands on Israeli academics – The Times
- NHS staff bearing brunt as ‘ugly’ racism of 70s and 80s returns, says Streeting – The Guardian
- Alan Bates to get multi-million-pound payout over Post Office scandal – BBC
- Ban on asking Green council about ‘predatory men’ in single-sex spaces – The Times
- School governors told to ‘dismiss’ grooming gangs concerns – Daily Telegraph
- RMT accepts three-year pay deal for London Underground staff – The Guardian
- Women need allyship to enter politics, expert says – BBC
- Reform council orders removal of St George’s flags for safety reasons – The Times
- You’ll soon be able to buy your ticket on board a train and not risk a fine – The i
- UK tax hike would have ‘massive’ impact on Scotland, warns SNP – BBC
- University dismissed plea to contact government over China pressure – The Times
News in brief
- How Britain can achieve renewal – William Waldegrave, The Spectator
- Labour’s tobacco ban will make Britain even more violent – Lord Strathcarron, CapX
- The BBC has gone full Pravda in its war of lies against Trump – Brendan O’Neill, Spiked
- The government is regulating the economy to death – Fred de Fossard, The Critic
- The BBC’s Top 50 Pieces of Climate Misinformation – Paul Homewood, Daily Sceptic
