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Plan for education cuts draws furious response
Ben Bailey21.09.09
The Government looks set to unveil further public spending cuts this week despite facing angry criticism over possible £2 billion cost-cutting programme in schools.
The Children's Secretary Ed Balls proposed axing up to 3,000 deputy heads and other senior posts as part of a bid to find the cash to fund frontline services, prompting warnings that teaching standards would be hit as a result.
Setting out the first concrete evidence of the cuts Gordon Brown publicly conceded were needed last week, he also warned teachers to expect to feel the pinch in pay packets.
The changes, which involve merging some schools' administrations, were vital to protect the jobs of ordinary teachers, he claimed, and could mainly be achieved through "natural wastage".
But he was warned by furious unions and a senior Labour MP that the "disastrous" plan to merge schools' administrations would impact on the classroom.
As the argument over where the post-recession axe will fall intensified, Labour launched a furious backlash against Tory claims they planned a secret income tax rise.
Shadow chancellor George Osborne said leaked Treasury figures showed a £14.8 billion rise in expected revenues in 2011/12 - the equivalent of a 3p rise in the income tax rate - which could not be explained by a predicted economic recovery.
But ministers said the figures were published at the time of the Budget in April, denied any hidden tax-raising plan and accused the Tories of "the politics of the big lie".
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liam Byrne was among a succession of cabinet ministers who accused Mr Osborne of misleading voters and engaging in "schoolboy" politics.
"He either does not understand economics or he is deliberately distorting the truth. I'm afraid neither is a qualification to be chancellor," he told Sky News.
Mr Osborne stuck to his claims, questioning why receipts from National Insurance and other taxes did not appear to be predicted to rise in line with such a recovery.
"What we've done is tell you the truth, shown you figures the Treasury didn't want to show you ... on these tax increases that are there, pencilled into the Red Book," he said.
Officials insisted the rise in income tax was in line with those seen in the aftermath of previous recessions and that it would be illegal to publish projections based on unannounced policies.
Mr Balls said he would not force any schools to work together - but warned that unless savings were found then teachers' jobs and other crucial services would be at risk.
"We are talking to teachers' leaders ... to see what we can do to find the savings which we will need to make sure, in the next spending review, we can keep the 40,000 extra teachers, 110,000 more teaching assistants, after-school clubs, the school building programme," he told the BBC.
John Dunford, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, was among teaching union leaders who hit out at the proposals.
"The claim by the secretary of state that the number of heads and senior school staff can be reduced without damaging teaching quality is manifestly false," he said.
"It is school leaders who have borne the brunt of implementing the huge number of changes introduced by the Government and it would be the ultimate irony if it is they who are sacrificed to get the country out of its economic predicament."
The proposals were welcomed by one teaching union, with NASUWT head Chris Keates backing the targeting of a "proliferation" of heads and deputies who worked as administrators not teachers.
Mr Balls, who has been at the forefront of Labour warnings to voters that they must choose between Labour investment and Tory cuts, denied making a U-turn with his cuts plans.
"I said a few months ago that I wanted to see us carrying on with real-terms rises in our key public services but that we would have to be smarter and defter and find efficiency savings to make that really work," he said.
"There is a big difference between that, which is the right, honest thing to do and saying, 'we won't raise the taxes', which is the Conservatives position, and because 'we want an inheritance tax cut' which costs £1.7 billion we now find out, they would have a £10 billion hole in their public finances which would mean much bigger cuts "
Mr Brown told trade unionists last week that Labour would "cut costs, cut inefficiencies, cut unnecessary programmes and cut lower priority budgets" but protect frontline services.
It was the first time he had used the word "cuts" but came as the Tories produced other leaked Treasury papers which showed the Government had been planning cuts of more than 9% for months.
Reader views (9)
Cut money for Education in Britain as the dosh is required for rebuilding new EU headquarters. That is 2 headquarters, as one is based in Brussels Belgium and one in Strasbourg France. Once a month convoy of lorries move documents from Brussels to Strasbourg and then back again.
Good to see that Britains EU yearly contribution £9.4Billion is well spent.
- William, Hay~Heath UK
Why not cut all schools and universities? With globalization we can rely on a sterady stream of skilled labour and professionals trained abroad, so we don't need to provide any sort of education really. Do you need to be able to read to push a broom or pick up litter?
- Sue R, London
'Bob, Cheam'. I think there's a couple more positions out in West Cumbria, so that three ex PLP members placed. If we keep at it, we should be able to get a government contract placing all the out of work Labour MP's. Just think, you be the CEO on £250,000, and I'll help you on £150,000, oh, plus bonuses and dividends from the millions we will make hiring out consultants!!!! That should still give, what do they call it?, ah yes, efficiency savings of about £1billion. Not bad for a couple of minutes work.
- Alan, carlisle uk
When Ed Balls is defeated in a landlide at the next election he should bear in mind that there's a village in Norfolk missing an idiot.
- Bob, Cheam
"Education, Education, Education". New Labour = Hypocrisy.
- Mick, London, England
Whilst I would not like to see children's education affected I am certain ther is plenty of room for cost cutting. If I look at my old primary school the number of pupils has increased by ~50% whilst the number of staff has trebled! Although there is no way of proving or checking this I suspect it achieved better results when I was there. Ed Ball's statement is too general - the trick is to identify exactly where to make the cuts. And they are needed!
- Michael, London
Yes, university spending should be cut severely - we have, for years, wasted far too much of our taxes on people studying useless arts subjects and fatuous 'ologies. Higher Education has become, since the 1960s, a booming industry in bourgeois status seeking and has little to do with the pursuit of enlightenment or the acquisition of socially useful skills.
- John, Dartford
Ey up, election coming, need to keep the nice little earner going. If we can save all this money now, why has it been wasted over the past 12 years. That's £24 billion p oured down the drain. Now look at all the other nice little earners fo the consultants and back to work contract winners. If a private company takes this on, it is because there is a profit in it, oh, and a nice six figure salary for the CEO. More money wasted.
- Alan, carlisle uk
Where has the record levels of taxations been spent? Why are we even in this position despite being one of the heaviest taxed nations in Europe?
Oh hang on... two illegal wars, moat duck houses, bailing out banks and rotten financial managment.
Nu Labour and Gordon Brown, thats why we are in this position.
- Mike Barry, Manchester
