Category Archives: Politics

Young people discuss the future of London

We were delighted to welcome 3 of the candidates for this May’s Greater London Assembly elections to our NewVIc Future London event, held at Stratford Circus Arts Centre on Wednesday 23rd March. The hustings were part of our Future London showcase … Continue reading

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Labour split or Labour unity?

This weekend, the case for a Labour split was given prominent coverage in the Observer newspaper. Party members were also able to read a rather more unifying message in an interview with the Labour leader in Labour Today, the party’s … Continue reading

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Getting the children to play nicely

Once upon a time the children used to play nicely. They had quite a lot of freedom and invented all sorts of very involved activities. They played singly, in pairs, in small and large groups.  They developed constructive, co-operative, competitive and territorial … Continue reading

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Starting to think about a National Education Service

The hysterical reaction from some quarters to the election of a new Labour leader has been quite extraordinary. In his first week in post after an overwhelming victory, Jeremy Corbyn has been portrayed as ‘the most dangerous man in Britain’ … Continue reading

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Diagnosis.

Doctor, I think I might have something quite serious. I must say you look fine, what are your symptoms? Well, I have this overwhelming feeling which just won’t go away. Go on… I can’t shake it off, it’s like a… … Continue reading

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Utopia as the education of our desires

London’s Roundhouse hosted an evening of utopian propositions last week, jointly programmed with Compass. Those of us there were able to experience Penny Woolcock’s extraordinary Utopia installation and listen to Owen Jones and other social justice campaigners. I was particularly struck by the contribution of … Continue reading

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Labour pains

Sapiens and Simplex are discussing the future of their party: Sapiens: We need to make ourselves popular again… Simplex:…but not adopt vote-winning policies. Sap: We need to listen to the electorate… Sim:…but not simply pander to what people want. Sap: … Continue reading

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Teachers create wealth too!

It’s become a commonplace to say that wealth has to be created before it can be spent and the received wisdom in mainstream political discourse is that the private sector does the wealth creating which then allows the public sector … Continue reading

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London: a global learning city

Next May, London will elect a new mayor and Greater London Authority (GLA). The mayor has no statutory education powers but the fact that they are directly elected by the people of London gives them a legitimacy and convening power … Continue reading

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A better future for London?

The political parties are currently in the process of choosing their candidates for the 2016 London mayoral and Greater London Assembly elections. For Labour, this means that members in London are pondering who is best placed to help win back the … Continue reading

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Aspiration – what’s that all about?

Are you suffering from aspiration fatigue? In a week when Labour leadership contenders were falling over themselves to urge the party to do more to appeal to ‘aspirational’ voters it’s not surprising we’re already tiring of it, especially when it’s … Continue reading

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Why Labour lost: the definitive analysis.

Your personal guide to why Labour lost. Hoping to explain the election outcome? Insert your own explanations to construct a reassuring account. Satisfaction guaranteed. 1. Why Labour lost. Labour lost because it failed to appeal to [insert demographic of choice] who shop in … Continue reading

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Tribalism or pluralism?

With no single party likely to win an overall majority in next week’s general election, they are all finding ways of answering, or not answering, the questions about what they will do in hypothetical post-election scenarios. So we are learning … Continue reading

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Young people and the election

Are young people turned off politics? Will they vote? Do they care who wins the election? Are all parties the same? Are the candidates just hacks mindlessly parroting their parties’ approved slogans? This week’s general election hustings at Newham sixth … Continue reading

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Is social mobility enough?

Analysing the data in the recently published Sutton Trust Social Mobility Index* has made me reflect a bit on ‘social mobility’ as a goal of public policy. My conclusion: it’s a worthy but inadequate response to the many injustices and … Continue reading

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