Bolitics The New Condem Government

[drat01]

Liverpool Council leader - LibDem - rages at Clegg and see's many leaving

Liberal Democrat council leader rages at Clegg over schools

Warren Bradley of Liverpool council says he felt 'physically sick' when he heard city would not get money for school buildings

The leader of one of the Liberal Democrat's flagship councils today criticised Nick Clegg, the deputy prime minister, for lining up with the Conservatives over the decision to axe a massive schools building programme.

Warren Bradley, the Lib Dem leader of Liverpool council, described the decision as the "straw that has broken the camel's back" for many in the party.

Highlighting the party divisions over the Lib Dems' decision to join the Conservatives in government, Bradley claimed that a number of Lib Dem colleagues on his council are among thousands who are considering quitting the party as a result, and warned that the party faces being wiped out by Labour in the north of England.

Bradley added to the clamour of protest against the decision to scrap the Building Schools for the Future programme, first announced by the education secretary, Michael Gove, on Monday, which would have seen 26 new secondary schools delivered in Liverpool.

The council leader described the decision as "unforgivable". He added: "I honestly felt physically sick."

It was ridiculous to abandon the school building plans when they were so advanced without putting other funding options in place, he said.

Bradley turned his fire on Clegg for failing to oppose the plans. "Being in coalition should be a two-way street," he said. "There are times when Clegg has got to say to Cameron, 'no more'. I think BSF is the straw that has broken the camel's back."

He added that he was not himself thinking of quitting the party: "I will continue to work to change the Lib Dem part of the coalition to make sure there is social justice. At the moment, I am seeing very little of it."

Even in Clegg's constituency - not that he dares spend much time in Sheffield now - there are major moans and groans about him. The radio report was stating that he is in serious danger of losing his seat at the next parliament. Meanwhile his puppet master just sits back and laughs

[bickster]

Thats funny, Liverpool's Liberal Party have ALWAYS been the De Facto Tory party of the area

BTW Warren Bradley doesn't even understand the word liberal (small L), he's an arsehole. A very unintelligent one at that. And a lot more besides that I can't put on line for fear of Si getting shut down

[Clarry]

What do you think of Gove and what he is doing?

If you know a child is in a prefab classroom that is unbearably hot in summer and freezing cold in winter you do something about it, whatever the cost.

To withdraw the money and leave them there is child abuse.

[tonyh29]

correlation does not imply...

yes it does

I'm sorry, Tony, but you seem not have understood what I posted.

then post complete structured sentences then :-)

[tonyh29]

What do you think of Gove and what he is doing?

tbh i've not really seen the story just a few headlines so it's why i've not commented ... something about some schools getting money and others not and some apology in the commons was about all I've heard but not looked beyond the headlines

without knowing the full details all i wonder is when were the promises of spending to these school made by labour ..was it in the weeks coming up the election when they knew they were on their way out or was it during the 13 years they had in power when they had a chance to actually do it rather than talk about doing it ?

[markavfc40]

How long are we going to have to put up with the conservative fuckwits saying all the cuts they are making is because of labour. To be quite frank its already wearing a little thin.

The deficit doesn't have to be wiped out with in 5 years. That is Osbourne/Camerons choice. The fact it will cost millions of jobs, means our childrens eductaion will suffer, that there will be fewer Police on the beat etc will be down to Tory choices and **** all to do with anyone else.

[TrentVilla]

I think one of two things are clear from that post Tony, either you really don't know anything about the education and what the previous government did for it in comparison to the ones it followed or you are deflecting my original question. Either way I was asking for your opinion and what I got was avoidance and a cheap shot which is miles wide of the mark.

[mykeyb]

Any cuts to education, health, armed forces and policing are always a bad thing.

Have this government decided to cut to deep to quickly - more than likely.

Did they have any option? - Labour will say yes Tory will say no... We all know we were deep in the shit before the election results were known and Im not at all suprised the tories have gone in quick as they can blame the previous government and pretty much get away with it.

[TrentVilla]

If you want actually talk about the facts of the subject rather than try that "why didn't Labour do anything about it in their 13 years", "they only promised spending to buy re-election" lines here are some facts for you.

After coming into power in 1997, Labour inherited a education system failing with run down schools, a huge number of teachers coming to the end of their careers and nowhere near enough NQT's coming through from the Universities in order to cope. Leading to schools being unable to recruit for basic core subject areas allowing supply agencies to boom and make a fortune supplying into the public sector.

They inherited an old run down collection of schools many of which were built in the 50's and 60's as temporary structures designed to last 25 years which had never been replaced.

Labour initially put their focus into boosting teacher numbers which they achieved and then set about a scheme of school rebuilding with the launch of their program in 2004.

Since 2004 Labour have built or rebuilt a total of 180 schools and work was due to start on 231 additional new schools. This wasn't some throw away election promise to get relected, this was a well thought out scheme 10 years in the planning and making which was making a difference across the country. Over 1000 schools were signed up which goes to show the level of requirements we are talking about here.

Now Gove has cancelled the projects (already agreed) for 719 schools. New schools which were needed, some 25 years over due so don't play the "Labour had 13 years" card because the Tory's had plenty of time and did nothing about the schools.

[markavfc40]

Im not at all suprised the tories have gone in quick as they can blame the previous government and pretty much get away with it.

They will get away with it with some. Those of us with a brain will see them for what they are and always have been.

[tonyh29]

How long are we going to have to put up with the conservative fuckwits saying all the cuts they are making is because of labour.

As I recall the labour fuckwits are still blaming it on Thatcher so I guess we are good for a few more years yet :-)

[tonyh29]

Over 1000 schools were signed up which goes to show the level of requirements we are talking about here.

yes yes we get the picture but how many of the 719 were added to the list in the last 6 months for example ?

[TrentVilla]

Over 1000 schools were signed up which goes to show the level of requirements we are talking about here.

yes yes we get the picture but how many of the 719 were added to the list in the last 6 months for example ?

Its clear I'm waiting my time asking for your views.

I asked you for an opinion and twice you've dodged the question trying the groundless claim that the scheme is some election trick pulled by Labour.

Its a cheap response mate, you can't simply spend the next 6 months answering difficult questions with that and the "they had 13 years" answer.

You said you didn't know anything beyond the headlines so I give you the figures and you still give no opinion just throw back the same response just worded in a different way.

[myb]

On a lighter note, just seen Mandelson's 'memoirs' advert for his book being serialised in the paoers over the weekend. What a prick.

[tonyh29]

I give you the figures and you still give no opinion just throw back the same response just worded in a different way.

not really , I just asked a question ... it's easy to shout "won't someone think of the children" but the question was when was the bulk of the money promised ?

I can see a reaction from the headline but one of the schools I looked at the work was earmarked to start in 2013 after the money was promised in March 2010 .. now i know that's only 1 school but that was what prompted my question ...

there is still a chance that it will go ahead , like all the other cancelled ones ?

the 13 years is important to a degree , because this govt are seemingly being damned and judged on 2 months , the public need to understand the economic situation and give them some time to try and put it right , and then see if they restore the school spending programme ...

lets see where we are in 2 years , not 2 months

[Reality]

Phil Woolas' diary on the last days of Labour

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/the-frantic-last-days-in-power-of-labours-immigration-minister-2022127.html

[TrentVilla]

not really , I just asked a question ... it's easy to shout "won't someone think of the children" but the question was when was the bulk of the money promised ?

Well it didn't come across as a question, more a dismissal to be honest.

I can see a reaction from the headline but one of the schools I looked at the work was earmarked to start in 2013 after the money was promised in March 2010 .. now i know that's only 1 school but that was what prompted my question ...

there is still a chance that it will go ahead , like all the other cancelled ones ?

My views on this aren't a reaction to a headline and so what if one school was promised the money recently. When you are talking about several hundred schools there are going to a number similar to that there are also going to be hundreds that have been on the list an waiting a number of years.

I personally don't think there is any chance all these schools will get built now.

the 13 years is important to a degree , because this govt are seemingly being damned and judged on 2 months , the public need to understand the economic situation and give them some time to try and put it right , and then see if they restore the school spending programme ...

lets see where we are in 2 years , not 2 months

Ah ok. This thread may as well end then and be re-opened in two years if we can't be critical of the actions of the government. When the Labour party introduced policies you didn't agree with were your critical of them or did you wait 2 years??

It has nothing to do with a lack of understanding of the economic situation. It was a simple question which you still haven't directly answered in relation to this policy although its quite obvious from your refusal to answer that you agree with the policy.

[Gringo]

How long are we going to have to put up with the conservative fuckwits saying all the cuts they are making is because of labour.

As I recall the labour fuckwits are still blaming it on Thatcher so I guess we are good for a few more years yet :-)

When witchy came to power, teaching was still thought of as a respectable profession - something not only to be proud of, but something that paid a good wage and these people would stand next to the local bank manager and other professionals and would sit on the parish councils or the local committees. Teachers held a little respect.

By the time we got to 1997, that respect for the post and the people who held those positons had dissappeared. Teaching was no longer a job you would go into if you wanted a nice detached house in a well to do suburban area, the wages of other industries had outpaced theirs and the industry was losing some of their better people to other jobs.

Of course some could always become heads of schools and make good their wage discrepancies that way, but only a minority can do that, as all schools only have one head. A lad I went to school with had two parents who had worked as teachers for 10+ years each, but it didn't pay - one went into selling insurance and the other was a freelance trainer. Using the skills that had been developed in schools and then lost to the education industry.

Labour at least pumped money back into the schools and gave the profession some respectability back, but their academy program which has been developed further by the tories was never going to solve the problems of quality that are still lacking. The tories will develop the worst of the labour ideas whilst strangling the funding required to restore the quality that has been missing for 30 years of tory rule.

[tonyh29]

Well it didn't come across as a question, more a dismissal to be honest.

the

?

at the end of my post(s) kinda gives it away :winkold:

on the school building programme , it had critics from the outset who claimed it was wasting money on an epic scale.. indeed only 35 of a planned 200 secondary schools were completed by the first target date of the end of 2008...and some of them had to be taken down and rebuilt again

the reason I said look past the headline wasn't aimed at any individual poster more at the fact that money is still going to be available . The new schools may not have shiny new bricks and designer windows but will actually provide more jobs for teachers.

what we had under the BSF program behind the shiny new bricks was the reality of poor teaching, declining standards of literacy and behaviour ..

so yes in part i do agree with what is being done ... they are aiming to increase the number and quality of teachers and also save on wastage / reduce the deficit

When the Labour party introduced policies you didn't agree with were your critical of them or did you wait 2 years??

there is being critical and there is posts of " **** tories " etc etc ( again i'm aware you didn't post that ) which again comes back to my read beyond the headline post and see what is actually being said ... and see the way Coves dealt with Balls on news night ..another potential labour leader that has just harmed his cause

Reality is that the country is in deep economic trouble and action has to be taken ..i'm assuming you want to keep the £55 bn rebuilding program ..so where would that £55bn come from ?

[drat01]

TBF Tony that reply could have come straight from Con HQ.

The fact that there are very vocal critics of this ridiculous policy from the Lab party is probably no surprise, the fact that Tory and LibDem's are also criticising it sort of shows that there is something seriously wrong with it. Add to that the many non political bodies that are criticising it adds even more to the simple fact that this policy is wrong and very harmful to the community as a whole. The ConDem's talked all this bollox about protecting front line services, something the Tory party has never done before and within days we see them going back on this word. Its not just education that gets affected either, a lot of private sector companies are being affected from a purely business perspective.

If you add to that the apologies that Gove has had to spout out - and again wrapped in various lies and U turns, its an appalling mess that they have brought upon themselves and much more importantly the UK.

Has any UK Gvmt had to issue so many apologies in such a short time of taking office?