Conservative leadership election

Teenagers should study core subjects including maths and English beyond GCSE as part of a new “British Baccalaureate”, Rishi Sunak has said. Setting out his education policies,  the Conservative leadership contender criticised the current A-level curriculum as overly narrow, saying it fails  to prepare young people for future ­economic opportunities. The former chancellor pointed to other countries in Europe and Asia where students have to study maths until the age of 18. Mr Sunak also vowed to create a ‘Russell Group’ of technical colleges to provide young people with a prestigious alternative to university if he becomes Prime Minister. Setting out his education policies, the Conservative leadership contender also said he would increase the use of AI in schools and continue a crackdown on poor value universities courses. The Russell Group was established in 1994 and now covers 24 universities - including Oxford, Cambridge and Imperial College London - with a reputation … [Read more...] about Teenagers should study maths and English beyond GCSE, says Rishi Sunak

This election was a gamble – as all elections are gambles. You can never take them for granted. But you can run a good campaign. Unfortunately this was a most appalling Conservative campaign – thoroughly inept. There were two principal problems: personality and policy. It was far too personal a campaign , and Theresa May couldn’t carry that off. Worse, there were too many things in the manifesto that hadn’t been thought through, with social care being the most obvious. Not that the social care proposals were in themselves stupid, but it is dangerous to do these things before elections if you don’t have to; better to introduce the legislation later, once elected. In this the two problems combined, because colleagues could have alerted her to the danger, had she consulted them. But she did not . She has always been a loner . She was a loner in the Home Office, and from day one as Prime Minister. By contrast Margaret Thatcher, with whom Mrs May has sometimes been … [Read more...] about Margaret Thatcher understood the secret of winning elections: free market economic policy

By Malu Cursino Published 49 minutes ago Share close Share page Copy link About sharing Former Labour prime minister Gordon Brown has called for an emergency budget before the UK hits a "financial timebomb" this autumn. Mr Brown said millions would be pushed "over the edge" if the government does not address the cost of living crisis. Conservative leadership rivals Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak have clashed over how they will address high inflation. He wants them to agree an emergency budget with PM Boris Johnson this week, or for parliament to be recalled. Writing in the Observer , Mr Brown said: "The reality is grim and undeniable: a financial timebomb will explode for families in October as a second round of fuel price rises in six months sends shock waves through every household and pushes millions over the edge." A new report commissioned by Mr Brown, carried out by … [Read more...] about Gordon Brown demands emergency budget before ‘financial timebomb’