Kier starmer! He hates strivers!

[Bucketheadbucketbum]

He wants to introduce a policy to put up the cost of school fees 10 to 15%. This is a tax on hard-working parents! We slave away cutting cots everywhere living hand to mouth to try and improve our childrens future . Live in an average house average area 1 shit car no holidays work like a dog to get our kids through. We are easing the burden on the state system by choosing independent schools. We're not sending them to Eton paid by our trust fund! Why does he want to punish strivers! Tax the energy companies! So disappointed. We need a new political party. What's the point in trying to better your future.

600,000 children are privately educated in the UK at least 100,000 of those are foreign students so less than 6% of the population, 90,000 will not be moving from private to state, also outside the tiny bubble on here no one gives a shit about this

www.isc.co.uk/research/

Perhaps start moaning when you can't eat or put the heating on despite 'striving' rather than because you can't afford to give your children enormous privilege.

You choose private education, its not a right.

And by cheap I mean 9k a year which I appreciate is is a lot of money to some people but is small change to the super rich.

I think the government pays around 6k per pupil per year excluding pupil premiums etc, so for a tiny school without economies of scale and the council support available 9k seems pretty much to be about cost to educate a kid per year. There simply isn’t room in the budget of the school to soak up price rises. It works like a state school in so many ways struggling through on the margins- want new sport equipment- have a cake sale etc. no super yachts or fancy stuff here

Its illogical to think that the extra tax income the government could get on my 9k fees (around 1-2k max) is going to be useful considering they will then need to spend 6k on education for my dd. Or likely they won’t as they still won’t be able to offer her a school place and I will have to stop work and home educate or somethings.

@Qazwsxefv - that is not an argument for retaining charitable status.

That's an argument to increase educational spending per child.

And if Sunak, Rees Mogg et al sent their kids to a state school, those funds would miraculously be found!

Why are you spreading disinformation? No one is acting to close private schools.

Sorry have I missed missed something? Think I'd have heard if this was an actual Labour policy.

As far as I'm aware, Starmer isn't in power, so this is all purely academic (heh).

Agree. People are a bit naive with this. It won’t happen.

My DH went to Eton (not wealthy parents, they inherited some money and spent all of it on his education).

He agrees that in no way was his school a charity and it should 100% be taxed as the business it is.

So he isn't coming at this from a pov of 'begrudgery' 🙄

What I'm not clear on is once all the private schools have gone, and the VAT argument is a moot point because no one's paying fees anymore, where is the money for the excellent state system going to come from?

Either we have the money to improve the state system or we don't. Pretending that VAT on fees is going to make any real difference is nonsense.

It's a bit like the argument about the private rented sector being the sole cause of all ills. Let's ignore the fact we have a shit social sector which means the PRS has become an inevitable option.

What I'm not clear on is once all the private schools have gone, and the VAT argument is a moot point because no one's paying fees anymore, where is the money for the excellent state system going to come from?

Why would all the private schools be gone, noone has mentioned abolishing them.

@BacklogBritain yes, that was actually my point.

And no, they weren't wealthy - my FIL was actually made redundant during the late 80s recession while DH was at school and they couldn't afford the petrol to visit him. The school fees were in a trust.

The vast majority of parents who send their kids to private school.. are not poor... they have managed to suck up way above inflation increases in fees over the last few years... they'll manage.

Why some the most well off in this country expect, no demand, their school choice be subsidised by the ordinary tax payer (and accepted by the less well off) just shows how mixed up we all are.

Why can none of you loons spell KEIR correctly, Jesus.

Hmm. Low taxes means that there is less to spend on state schools. People who can afford to pay to go somewhere better do, and then fight the increase in taxes to fund the schools better because they don't use them.

Bring it on. If you afford £20k you can afford £22k.

So you're saying the VAT is sufficient to fix the state school system? And accommodate extra children from private schools who may move their children out or choose not to send them even though they may otherwise have done so.

What no one has clarified is the net result of all this. Take the emotion out of it, all the nastiness about people who send their kids to private school even though they're 'dim Tims' as someone pleasant up thread said - how will this actually change things for the better?

For many parents it's a choice, yes. But it's a choice between a shit state school or no state school and a private school.