Boris Johnson is the twentieth Prime Minister from Eton

[Erythronium]

On the other hand we've only had two female PMs.

Isn't it time Eton started letting in girls, so they'd have the same chance as all the males to be PM? Those are good odds.

Redtoothbrush - just Eton or all public schools?

I'd like to say just Eton but in reality you'd have to scrap the top 30 or so to make a difference.

Redtooth why just Eton? There are plenty of successful old boys/girls from other public schools.

These people who do well in these schools are not “genetically better”, they’re spoon fed an education. Boris would likely be a B/C student without it. Why would people spend £30k a year unless they knew it’d give their kids much better grades than they’d otherwise get

That's really not what I was saying. The topic was meritocracy, and the degree to which is really creates social mobility.

Do you really think that genetic advantages have nothing to do with who does well in a meritocracy? That seems improbable.

Good schools undoubtably give their students all kinds of advantages that would also help most kids who were able to access that kind of education.

Most PM's since 1960 have gone to grammar school.

Of the four who went to private school it's true that three have gone to Eton.

However, as things stand for the old Etonians, both Douglas Home and Johnson only became PM following a resignation. Cameron did eventually manage to win a majority, but he only managed to control it for a little over a year because of Brexit.

So far their track record is a bit embarrassing. So much advantage, but not much to show for it.

Both Cameron and Johnson are overly endowed with confidence, which has hindered rather than helped their ability to be effective at their jobs. Take away the contacts and financially privileged backgrounds, and there really isn't much there.

Good schools undoubtably give their students all kinds of advantages that would also help most kids who were able to access that kind of education.

But is Eton a particularly good school?

Would it really do a good job of educating children who don't arrive fully equipped with all life's advantages?

Zac Goldsmith was chucked out for having cannabis in his room. What if you can't expel children who break the rules?

It is an Elton and Oxford thing, not a ‘man’ thing. The ‘patriarchy’ did not set up a school that excludes 99.5% of boys! Bizarrely, we have not had a Cambridge PM since Baldwin.

The real shock is how few PMs are maths/science (Thatcher being an honourable exception) and so many PPE, skilled in fabricating an argument but not really that logical or able to distil and analyse facts.

The solution is not getting Eton to admit girls, creating female versions of braying arrogant fools (NAEALT!) but valuing different qualities in politicians.

Maybe Oxford should also be abolished as plenty of Tory politicians went there.

Agree with merrymouse it’s all selective schools

That might be the key message.

(Especially if you look at post war or post 1960, which is probably more germane than what happened in the 1800s when availability of schooling and educational choices were totally different)