UK Schools forced to look for funding online.
What does this say about the Conservative government?
This week it was confirmed that over 1,000 schools in England have turned to online crowdfunding and wish lists to purchase essential supplies. An investigation carried out by the Guardian concluded that schools were being forced into these measures to buy basics such as pencils and textbooks. To say this is a monumental embarrassment on the UK government’s part is a significant understatement.
This news came only days after it was estimated that Britain is £66 billion worse off because of Brexit. This is despite feeling as though the country is no closer to fulfilling the result of the referendum of almost three years ago. It seems that it is still perfectly acceptable to throw billions towards getting the UK out of the European Union, yet every time our politicians vote in the Commons the outcome ends in more stalemate. What exactly has all this money achieved? Nothing more than making the country poorer and more of a laughing stock on the world stage.
The failing attempts to pour an ungodly amount of money into departing the EU isn’t the only overpriced gamble which the government has sunk a fortune into. The £1 billion bargaining chip given by the Conservative Party to the DUP to secure a confidence and supply coalition in 2017 showed that, despite winning the election, cold hard cash was required by Theresa May to form a government. Needless to ask what could have been achieved if that sort of money was given to the education or health, unfortunately, the government had other ideas. This has been proven to not even be useful to May as winning round the DUP to her withdrawal agreement has proved harder than she would have wanted.
It has long been talked about that Brexit fatigue is taking hold. This is very true. What is also true is that our politicians are so absorbed in Brexit they are neglecting other areas of their duty. If any MP needed a reality check, then this news about schools surely must be it.
What isn’t acceptable, according to the upper echelons of the Conservative government, is to provide essentials for their nation’s children. Every child has a right to an education, yet this is not possible if more and more schools are being forced into desperate measures just to provide the bare minimum for its pupils.
When the government cuts to education, policing and health are affecting the lives of the public to the extent that people are being genuinely neglected then it is time for a change. It is shameful that a nation which is one of the wealthiest on the planet continues to have a government which fails to provide the most basic aspects of education to its children.
Prioritising Brexit over the education of future generations, children who will leave school into a world in which their country is no longer part of the EU is a sign of the government shooting themselves in the foot. They will be most affected, let us hope the impact on their education won’t prevent them from growing up to make the same mistakes of the government which stripped their schools of resources. the political heads of the future will not need to do much in order to better the current figures in parliament.
