AIBU to reconsider a long friendship over support for education tax?

[CoconutRumcake]

A close friend of over 15 years last night unashamedly said she supported the children’s education tax. To put this in context, she is godmother to my ds and has seen first hand what damage this has done to children and families as well as her own sister losing her job when the school closed. She had maybe drank too much and has apologised over text this morning, but I really can’t shake the feeling that I don’t want to be around her.
AIBU -try and move past it
YANBU -it’s run it’s time

I don’t think people are necessarily spiteful. It’s just that back here in the real world it’s very hard to have sympathy for wealthy parents who are whingeing that paying a tax everyone else is subject to has resulted in their kids being disadvantaged in some way. It’s not as though their kids won’t be educated at all.

It’s exactly this underlying malice aimed at children that I find quite disconcerting. Yes you get to make a few children’s lives a bit more challenging, close a few schools, make a six year old cry and then rub in their parents faces..but really do you actually feel better about your life because of this? You have to remember that we are real people and these are real children.

Not everyone wants their child to go to the state school..some people want to have the choice to shape their children's education

And they still can. They just can’t use a loophole to dodge tax while doing so any more.

It’s not as though their kids won’t be educated at all.

Brilliant. Labour should have ran on that slogan.

Do you have dc at state and has this policy helped their education? It’s not moved the dial on anything at our state. All I see is some glee over other schools closing. That’s not good, it hasn’t done anything bar some odd satisfaction over kids having to leave.

Still got that breathing air tax loophole open though.

What do you think private schools are OP, if they are not businesses?

What are you paying for?

If I hire a tutor for my child should I expect to pay tax? I'm buying someone's time and provision of skill, should it be tax free because it's educational? What if I entirely home schooled using tutors and my child never crossed a school threshold, should I still pay tax? I'm saving the government money like you claim to be, but the tutors still need paying for their work and they still need to pay tax.

I mean, they pretty much did!

well, look at this from this perspective, if someone in a privileged position compared to the majority, complains about how hard done they are by having to pay more for things they can presumably still afford by choice

unsurprisingly generates an element of schadenfreude because it lands as being completely tone-deaf and devoid of empathy

it doesn't help that this particular person is refusing to engage with logic, while slagging their long-term friend off as an idiot

If you want to de-friend them over a difference in what sounds like an ideology, fine, do it, but don't ask for opinions and then refuse to engage in a sensible, or even coherent manner

meanwhile, as I've pointed out earlier, OP is doing well in terms of getting the maximum amount of traction out of this towards 40 pages and "thread locked"

😂 there is zero point in engaging with the OP tbh...

It's a classic AIBU.....majority of MN responses....yes you are...

OP....I dont like that answer...
no I'm not!

Therefore entirely pointless!

And that’s fine. It’s the reluctance to accept that it should be taxed in line with all other goods and services I have a problem with.

Given your attitude, a state school will benefit your children’s development and hopefully counterbalance your influence.

There is not a tax on education at university. Presumably because discouraging education is a dumb thing to do? Not when aged between 5 and 18 though, it’s fine then

Everyone has to breathe. Nobody has to use private education. Try looking up ‘straw man argument’. The definition will probably look very familiar to you.

Your children were crying because they had to leave a school that didn't have a good enough leadership team to sufficiently plan for this outcome. They are also probably now crying because you can't afford to send them to a suitable alternative. They had a taste of the nice life and Mummy and Daddy don't have enough money to see it through. Shame on you.

It's created more demand for places at all the decent and already over subscribed schools here. Including the grammar schools, which could also be argued to also be an unfair foot up for some children. I wouldn't argue that personally but I have heard it said.

Oh dear. This doesn’t reflect well tbf

ah so you want non charities to get the tax breaks that no one else enjoys? Ok.

It isn’t even taxed in line with education services outside of ages 5 to 18, let alone all other goods and services. Do you support taxing nursery care and post 18 education to bring it into line?

Yes they are, but nice for people to have a broad range of educational choices that suit their children

Do you mean it's nice for wealthy people to have a broad range of educational choices that suit their children? Because wealthy people still do have that choice. The vast majority of parents do not have that choice, VAT or not.

I did NOT expect this when I clicked on this thread. Please do go on @CoconutRumcake , I haven't had this much entertainment since the Liz Truss lettuce.

If I were to choose private school for dd, I'd be happy to pay the luxury tax it entails, because I do believe it is a luxury. I feel though that your friend is allowed her opinion and you are allowed yours, it shouldn't stop a friendship.

You brought up charitable tax breaks, I was just asking what you are taking about. Do you mean the removal of business rate charitable relief?

There are two things I particularly love about Mumsnet. The first is posters who ask if they are being unreasonable, 99% of their fellow posters say 'You are being unreasonable', and the OP shouts 'NO I'M NOT.'

The second is snow-flake hysteria about things that happen at school. 'DD was made to sit next to a boy with very bad BO and has come home in tears. What should I do.' Reponses: 'Assault! Report to the police.' 'Get the governors to sack the teacher!' 'Safeguarding! Report to Ofsted, the Local Authority Designated Officer, the Department for Education and Lucy Powell!' 'Withdraw her from school!' 'Home school her!'