To be completely shocked by this - Bridget can’t tell us the impact of the government’s VAT on Education?

[Sasskitty]

Bridget Phillipson dodges question on impact of private school tax raid

As parents and schools complain of chaos, Ms Phillipson refuses to spell out details of the assessment made by the department for education

Bridget Phillipson failed to spell out the full impact of the government’s private school VAT raid, dodging the question when asked about the possible implications for special education schools.

While she said the government has “looked at all of the potential impacts”, her answer failed to provide any real detail on the expected consequences.

It comes as parents and schools complain about the implications of the tax raid, which came into force on New Year’s Day and is expected to raise £1.5bn for the Treasury.

YABU - Bridget Phillipson has it all in hand. She just didn’t feel like answering the pesky question. The point is to piss rich people off. Leave Labour alone, they want nothing but erm oh I’m not sure.

YANBU - Phillipson clearly has no idea what the impact of VAT on Education will be. Nor does she really care as long as she’s seen to be punishing those horrible rich people. Or even better (it seems) the not really rich ones just trying to improve the education of their children as the available state schools were not suitable.

https://apple.news/AO7fcmrzuRaik4stLaPQxwA

(sorry paywall but there’s not much more in the article)

PS. I’ve removed the poll tally, no one needs to see real data. Do they?

‘You said every child. That’s not true. It’s pretty tough being one of the 0.1%.’

I’m sure. But the world doesn’t revolve around 0.1%.

It's not a handful of parents.

https://www.tes.com/magazine/news/general/another-legal-challenge-made-to-vat-independent-schools-policy

What a spiteful thing to say.

It’s a statement of fact, there’s nothing spiteful about it.

No. It’s spiteful. How you would you feel if your disabled child apparently didn’t count? I don’t expect the world to revolve around him. I do expect him to be offered a basic education. He wasn’t.

There are people on these threads parroting that state schools can meet the needs of every child. That isn’t true. Then when it’s pointed out to them that it isn’t true, they start trying to dig themselves out of a hole by saying the world doesn’t revolve around the others.

Also, if the state really could meet the needs of every child, why does it have to fund the places of the children with some of the most complex needs in specialist independent schools? Where is its own provision?

Ignoring the fact that you’re being rather unkind yourself, obviously if the state pays for a place in the private sector because it can’t accommodate a child’s needs, that is still state provision.

Nobody is “parroting” anything; how rudely dismissive of other viewpoints.

Good grief. I’m being unkind? Am I?

Actually yes you are and it’s unnecessary.

I don’t think the Treasury is going to be entertaining ideology above figures. Big change of tone this weekend.

Please tell me what I’ve said that’s unkind or unnecessary

It’s all there in your post above.

@ChallahPlaiter Enough people repeating the same statement that is patently untrue is parroting. I haven’t said anything unkind and I am curious that you think I have. My disabled child was severely let down by the state for several years. I’m glad that your children have had their needs met, but that doesn’t negate my child’s experience. Other posters suggesting that “the 0.1%” doesn’t count is spiteful and simply proves my point that the state doesn’t provide education for every child.

And you personally attacking me isn’t very pleasant. I haven’t attacked anyone. I’ll leave it there.

Probably best.

Nobody said they didn’t count. Obviously they do. Equally obviously the world doesn’t revolve round them except even more obviously for their parents.

With other stuff they've realised they've got wrong.

With education? Perhaps it's the one thing they'll let drop as it's only children

Maddening

They have bulldozed on a few idiotic policies which are now changing, if they'd do the same here

I honestly don't believe they will drop it. Phillipson's career would be over and they won't let that happen. Looks like they will have to fully exempt all military after the release this week. I also believe they will have to exempt all SEN. Which means cumulatively, over half of kids will be exempt. But this policy is so built into Reeves, Raynor + Phillipson that I think they would be happy to get even 50% of parents paying, even though that will end up being a cost to taxpayer of up to 1 Billion per year. It just shows how economically illiterate and incompetent they are, sticking to crazy ideology at the expense of everything.

@twistyizzy I agree. Labour wouldn’t be the first government to make a bad decision and then refuse to back down. I just wish they had a plan and a way of obtaining the funds to actually improve the state sector and SEN provision. If they do, they’ve kept it very quiet. But hey, “it’s a very popular policy”.

Sorry, but it is just a fact. When it comes to VAT on fees- SEN is being used when there are borh more SEN kids in mainstream schools and most children in private schools do not have SEN.

The point I was making is that the state system CAN’T meet the needs of every child.

To go from saying that it CAN, to then acknowledging that actually it can’t, but using the unpleasant phrase that “the world doesn’t revolve around” the children whose needs the state CAN’T meet, isn’t a particularly kind thing to say. Perhaps my choice of the word ‘spiteful’ was excessive.

It’s not a kind or inclusive statement though is it?

:Sorry, but it is just a fact. When it comes to VAT on fees- SEN is being used when there are borh more SEN kids in mainstream schools and most children in private schools do not have SEN.”

That is simply factually incorrect. The statistics are showing similar percentages of SEND in the state and independent sector.

Do the autistic children who can achieve in the right environment simply not matter?

Perhaps go read Bill Gates autobiography, another neurodiverse man.

As a society, we cannot afford not to meet the needs of the children with SEND. 18.4% of children. That is almost 1/5 of children now!

This society simply cannot afford old school leftie ideology, the figures do not stack up. And I am certain the Chancellor knows it!

Boris.
Rishi
Tony

This is not a new phenomenon nor is it misogynistic to call a woman by her fucking name

Get a grip

I should add that every comment I have made on all of these threads is because my elder child has multiple complex disabilities. He wasn’t offered a state education for several years, hence our choices were either for me to give up my job (as the lower earner) and homeschool him, or enter the private system. We wouldn’t have entered the private system in the first place if we’d had the choice not to. We are not the only family in this situation.

My younger son doesn’t have SEN. He’s in Y12 so we are taking the VAT on the chin for his last few terms. I have shared our story many times on here because it’s so frustrating to be told, by those who don’t have disabled children, or those who do but who are ‘fortunate’ enough that their needs can be met in mainstream state, that all children can be catered for in the state sector. To me, the percentage of children this affects is irrelevant. When it’s your own child, of course the percentage is irrelevant. I just want other posters to try to understand.