Rishi Sunak went without Sky TV so his parents could send him to private school

[number10bus]

Honestly this has really annoyed me, apart from the fact it's such crap - he came from a family where his parents were a GP and a pharmacist, it's like he's literally thought of the most working class stereotype and applied that. He's so out of touch and I don't know why this one has annoyed me so much but it really has.

I'm not much older than our prime minister and we didn't have one either, or holidays and not much in the way of any luxury items and guess what my parents couldn't afford to send me to private school despite them working very hard too.

A Mr frosty was a toy that resembled a bear of some sort and you could make ice with it ? I saw all the ads for it ( on my old tv) but was told no ! Same with a ' soda stream ' gadget I liked the look of. No Barbie or Cindy either ! My mum said they were sexist and Barbie was American , so no way!!
I did have a Tiny tears though. She was probably cheaper and less high maintenance.

This is what it looked like in the 80s.

I also wanted one, but my parents wouldn't let me.
It's was either a Mr Frosty or a horse.

The sacrifices i had to make......

Sunaks campaign is the longest resignation letter in history

Yup - of course. Not even guessing. This is my personal experience. Never underestimate what people who have forsaken all to make it in another country despite not belonging/racism etc will do to access what they consider would be the best for their kids

I heard a preview of the interview he made this comment in this morning, and whilst I'm no fan of Rishi, he was pressed for examples of what luxuries his parents went without to fund his education. Tbf to him, if he thinks back to his 9yo self, how would he have known other than what was viewed as a luxury/important to him at the time? Context is everything, and I think he's being rinsed on this particular example unfairly.

If he had prepared at all he should have considered that at some point in the election campaign he would have been asked this question and he should have had a better answer that wasn't going to make him look worse or not recognise his privilege. But he doesn't care and that comes across consistently.

If I gave up food, I still wouldn't be able to afford private school... seriously what a twat.

Precisely - Senior GP partner was relatively wealthy in the 90s. A senior NHS consultant at the time earned around £60k per annum and Winchester fees in 1995 were £12k per annum. And there is his mum's earnings. Plus GPs are businesses so depending on how thet manage the business, can turn over an even healthier profit. My dad bought a 3 bed flat in Bethnal Green (London) in the 1995 for £56k. Those were different times.

They clearly weren't as wealthy as he is now but by prioritising - definitely do-able and very much remains what most middle-class economic migrants are working towards

In his line of work he should have known he’d be asked that as soon as he mentioned sacrifices. That he didn’t think of any examples in advance, and couldn’t think of anything more substantial on the hop, says a lot about him and how lacking he is.

He’s either surrounded by really shit advisors atm or he’s ignoring them and going his own way and that’s failing spectacularly.

I agree that he should recognise and address his privilege. But he won't win unless he apologises for his privilege. Why should he? Do you want someone poorly educated as PM?

If he is an example of "well educated" then we are well and truly fucked.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11042927/Golden-boy-Rishi-Sunaks-high-flying-siblings-strived-match-youthful-success.html

His sister is working in New York for the U.N so state school (& no sky!) did her no harm😂

That's my parents' story and they have worked hard and done well for themselves. And yet still on no planet would they have been able to afford private school for their kids, let alone fancy private school.

I feel I would said ' my parents made a few sacrifices as parents do ' and left it at that.
It's not ideal , but just saying ' they could afford it all ' is also a bad look.
He cant hide his wealth or what he had as a child, so no point trying to really.

In the early 90s having a satellite dish (or BSB squariel) was a lower class marker. The middle classes didn’t have it because it was seen as trashy. (No high brow BBC 4 back then)

A satellite dish was “very council house,” to quote the awful vicar’s wife at my gran’s chapel. That woman was the Hyacinth Bucket of the valleys.

It wasn’t a sacrifice to do without one, it was very unusual to have one at all.

@Viewfrommyhouse no, I don't t think he should apologise for his privilege? I don't much care about his education. I care about his ability to do the job. Being ill prepared and arrogant and not the hallmarks of someone with an ability to be a good prime minister.

Depends really. My mother was a part time secretary and my father was a grocery shop manager, but they managed to finance my brother going to a local private school. They went without holidays, ran a crappy old car that forever broke down, had no money for home repairs etc., but still managed to pay for private school. But that was a "bog standard" local private school, not Winchester etc so wasn't that expensive really, and clearly within the affordability of a couple of pretty "normal" working class people who made sacrifices.

He doesn't have to apologise for his privilege but he should acknowledge it instead of pretending that he wasn't that privileged because he didn't get the Sky TV he wanted.

It was.
We didn't have it but it was available.

If you listen to the interview, that's exactly what he tried to do but was pressed by the interviewer more than a few times to give examples.

Mr Frosty looks incredible! How did I not know about that? Mind you I did have a Sindy and a Soda stream so was living the dream and happy to just attend a bog-standard comp.
I wasn’t allowed a Girls’ World though because my Mum said it was misogynist crap.

Hardly a grilling from the Gestapo though. Given the set and setting it's a fucking slam-dunk sort of question that should have a prepared answer. Especially since it was asking about something from his own direct experience.

Maybe he should have stuck to saying he was a massive Coke addict. (again).

I'm sorry what? Where is this claim? is it real?

Indeed - not all can or will. Not sure if you are saying your parents also became comparatively financially successful as a GP and Pharmacist - cos if they earned the same /similar and could not afford to, that is a choice/prioritisation that is their absolute right. My parents came from even worse. My dad walked 6km to school in a Nigerian village before being lucky enough to win a scholarship to the UK. Rose up the ranks and sent all 4 of us to private schools in the UK (London day schools considered elite). Not every Nigerian migrant could do that but most that do, do it from a lower financial base than people would think. And our kids are beneficiaries of that and their kids will be and so on. More than that, the lives we touch in our chosen careers as scientists, judges, charity leaders etc are beneficiaries of that.

I doubt there is any social circumstance that leads to the same result in everyone. The question was 'is it possible for a GP and pharmacist to send their kids to an elite school in the UK in the 90s' and the resounding answer is YES, and it is not rare. As I said, most consultants I trained under sent their kids to St Paul's, Westminster, Merchant Taylors in London in those days

I wasn't allowed a ' girls world ' either along with Sindy or Barbie dolls.
I often think this is why I'm useless at doing my own hair or make up to this day :(
😂
( it was more cost than anything else , but my mum was suspicious of these 'modern dolls ' )
(What she'd have made of the Barbie film I've no idea.)