Reform Media Summary

21 April 2008

Coverage of Reform’s latest report on social mobility. The report estimates that the cost of low social mobility in the UK is £1,300 per household, or £32 billion a year. A lead article in the Telegraph cites evidence from the report to corroborate its theme of a diminished sense of personal responsibility that currently exists in British society. The report, “Shifting the unequal state: From public apathy to personal capability”, is published by Reform today (Telegraph, p.4, p.23; Mail, p.19).

Coverage in Scotland on Sunday supports Reform Scotland’s proposals to introduce a voucher system similar to that of Holland and Sweden which would revolutionise the Scottish education system. Geoff Mawdsley, Director of Reform Scotland, said that they “are countries that share our commitment to universal access and extending educational opportunity for all. The difference is that they believe these objectives can best be achieved within a system which gives parents greater control over their children's education and a greater range of schools from which to choose because this drives up standards across the board” (Scotland on Sunday).

Reform Scotland’s launch was also covered in the Herald on Saturday and the Sunday Times (Ecosse).

Economy

Alistair Darling will reportedly tell MPs today that the Bank of England’s £50 billion rescue plan for the banks and mortgage lenders could be doubled. The Ernst and Young ITEM Club expressed support for the unprecedented bonds-for-mortgages stimulus package. John Redwood, MP, chairman of David Cameron’s economic competitiveness policy group, said the bank’s move represented “an extraordinary U-turn” compared with its reluctance to step in last year (FT Weekend, p.1; Sunday Times, p.2; Sunday Telegraph, p.26 [leader]; Mail on Sunday, p.53; Times, p.1; Telegraph, p.1, p.23 [leader]; Mail, p.2; Independent, p.36, p.36, p.37; Sun, p.2; FT, p.1, p.2, p.2; Mirror, p.6, p.10 [leader]; Guardian, p.25, Express, p.50).

The Chancellor, Alistair Darling, will reportedly call Labour MPs who had opposed the abolition of the 10p tax rate to a series of private meetings today. Frank Field MP, a member of Reform's Advisory Board, is to table an amendment requiring a package of immediate compensation. Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, Robert Chote, Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, comments that this latest tax change continues the discriminatory trend of Labour's tax and benefit changes since 1997 (Telegraph, Saturday, p.1; Express, Saturday, p.6; Times, Saturday, p.38-39; Guardian, Saturday, p.7; Sunday Times, p.1, p.16 [leader]; Sunday Telegraph, p.1, p.26 [Robert Chote]; Mail on Sunday, p.8-9; Times, p.4; Mail, p.4, p.14 [leader], p.17 [Peter McKay]; Independent, p.4, p.28 [leader]; Sun, p.2; Mirror, p.6; Guardian, p.4, p.31 [Jackie Ashley], p.32; Express, p10).

A new Policy Exchange report recommends that some existing spending on childcare should be converted into a weekly payment of £55 for all families (Times, p.8; Telegraph, p.8; Mail, p.27; Independent, p.6).

Research published today by the Institute for Fiscal Studies called for a drastic overhaul of Britain’s tax credit and benefit system. The report recommends tax cuts for low earners who face weak work incentives (FT, p.2, p.2).

Figures from the Conservatives have shown that one in three people of working age has saved nothing towards their pension (Mail, Saturday, p.2).

New Department of Work and Pensions figures: almost 3.4 million people have been claiming benefits for longer than two years, up by 250,000 since 1999 (Times, p.4; Telegraph, p.2; Express, p.15).

An accountancy firm, Baker Tilly, has found that 45 per cent of medium-sized company finance directors were considering cutting costs by reducing staff in early April – up from 26 per cent a month earlier (FT, p.4).

The Confederation of British Industry said yesterday that business is deeply sceptical about the Prime Minister’s promises to “broaden and deepen” public service reform (FT, p.4).

According to a study by the OECD, Britain lags behind international rivals in devolving power to local agencies to resolve skill shortages and return the long-term unemployed to work. Continued coverage of “third sector” involvement in the Government’s back-to-work initiative (FT, p.5, p.5).

According to a report by Citi Private Bank and Knight Frank, the rich are getting richer, propelling a big rise in the cost of luxury homes in the capital that contrasts starkly with falling house prices elsewhere in the market (FT, p.3).

Families are facing another hike in energy prices, with bills set to rise by £250 for every household (Express, p.1).

Education

Ed Balls, the Schools Secretary, has called the National Union of Teachers irresponsible for demanding a pay rise higher than the 2.45 per cent proposed by the Government. He told the Times on Saturday: “I am disappointed by what is happening, although I think my disappointment will be matched by that of parents across the country”. More than 1,000 schools could close on Thursday as teachers strike (Times, Saturday, p.15; Sun, p.2; Telegraph, p.2; Guardian, p.1).

The Telegraph on Saturday reported that Labour MPs are preparing to call for academic selection to be scrapped in a move which may reignite the debate over the future of grammar schools (Telegraph, Saturday, p.1; Mail, Saturday, p.15).

A Times letter from ten headteachers of leading independent schools explains their involvement in the academies programme (Times, p.18).

A Bow Group study to be published today exposes the significant gap between the performance of rich and poor pupils. Only one in five children on free school meals obtain the Government’s benchmark of five A to C GCSEs – including Math and English. This compares to 49 per cent of those not on free school meals. The report calculated that more than £70 billion of taxpayers’ money had been spent educating almost 4 million young people who failed to achieve the benchmark (Telegraph, p.8; Independent, p.13).

Minutes of a high-level meeting of education ministers and experts who are designing the new schools diploma have shown doubts that the designers back the controversial qualification themselves (Sunday Telegraph, p.12).

Health

Doctors are pressured into signing more than 700,000 people off sick who are perfectly fit to work (Telegraph, Saturday, p.13; Mail, Saturday, p.7; Express, Saturday, p.1).

An annual report on meningitis C immunisation released today shows that, for the first time since records began, no meningitis C deaths were recorded in the past year among under-19s (Independent, p.6; Mirror, p.29; Telegraph, p.6; Mail, p.6).

David Cameron is to begin a week of campaigning on health today with a call to GPs to oppose polyclinics (Times, p.26; Telegraph, p.1; Mail, p.12; FT, p.4; Sun, p.2; Express, p.2).

Junior doctors are to see their £5,000 accommodation allowance cancelled in August, Minister for Health, Ann Keen, announced (Mail on Sunday, p.16).

New research by a team at the University of Edinburgh leads to the development of treatments for cancer that do not leave women infertile (Telegraph, p.6; Mail, p.1; Guardian, p.7).

A new drug, Pradaxa, could help prevent thousands of deaths from blood clots following surgery (Mail, p.23).

In an article for the Mail Dr Richard Barker, Director General of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, describes it as a “national scandal that we have sub-standard cancer treatment in so many parts of the country” (Mail, p.68).

An inquiry by the Children’s Society will warn that pressure on children to grow up too quickly is leaving an increasing number with mental health problems (Telegraph, p.2; Mail, p.26).

Home Affairs

Almost two-thirds of police forces in England and Wales will miss ethnic minority recruitment targets. These were set nine years ago following the Macpherson inquiry into the murder of Stephen Lawrence (Guardian, p.5).

Police are failing to sack officers who have been convicted of drink-driving (Guardian, p.6).

Politics

Times leader: “Many [Labour] MPs appear to have lost the political will to live” (Times, p.16).

Bruce Anderson says in a comment piece: “Our PM is a statist. He profoundly believes in using the power of the state to control society, and individual’s lives. That’s what puts him at odds with many voters’ experience” (Independent, p.29).

David Cameron lavishes praise on key Blairite ministers including Lord Adonis, the Education Minister and Alan Milburn, the former Health Secretary, in what may be seen as an attempt to widen rifts within the Government (Telegraph, p.4; Mail, p.4).

Charles Clarke MP writes a letter to the Times attacking Ed Balls MP over his behaviour and policy (Times, p.18).

Further coverage of London election campaign (Sun, p.6 [Trevor Kavanagh]).