Former Labour Secretary of State for Education Estelle Morris was guest of honour at a Redlands Labour Party fundraiser at Zizzi’s on Thursday 24 November.
Introduced by former MP Martin Salter, Baroness Morris said that while Tory Education Secretary Michael Gove kept talking about wanting to improve the life chances of the disadvantaged, Tory policies on the ground just hit the disadvantaged harder.
“The cuts to early years and Sure Start, the cuts in real-terms school funding, the abandonment of schemes Labour had set up to put funds into poorer areas, the ending of Educational Maintenance Allowances which encouraged pupils to stay on at school, and the huge hike in student tuition fees all work against disadvantaged pupils from poorer backgrounds,” she said, “and Michael Gove and his colleagues know it.”
“I am very proud of the educational achievements of the last Labour Government,” Baroness Morris, a former teacher, added, “although sometimes I think we got too hung up on structures rather than what actually happens in the classroom. We now have the opportunity to rebuild our approach to education, based on what works and what we can deliver, and to build a system that will serve the needs of all children rather than just the well-heeled.”
Labour’s candidate for Redlands, Tony Jones, said “We are greatly indebted to Baroness Morris of Yardley - better known as Estelle Morris - for being the guest speaker at the latest Redlands Labour Party fund-raising event.
“Not only did she bring in a sell-out crowd - always good news for a fund-raiser! - she offered some interesting insights into the current divisive education policies of the coalition government, as well as laying out some challenges for us in the Labour Party.
“Estelle also praised the ward for the outstanding election result at the last council elections where we resoundingly beat the LibDems and wished us well for next May!”
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