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Minister of Education Announces New Teachers

According to the Labour party Source, a large portion of teachers who were qualified during the past decade have since decided to leave the profession. In response, the party plans to propose a Commons vote this week in order to push their plan to impose VAT on private school fees to pay for new teachers in the state sector.

Labour's Analysis

Labour's analysis of Department of Education statistics showed that nearly 270,000 people qualified as teachers in England between 2011 and 2020. Almost 81,000 of these teachers have left the profession since then, which is around three in ten of the total amount. Additionally, 13% of teachers in England who have qualified since the last general election have quit since December 2019, which is about 3,000 in total.

Impending Strikes

Three teaching unions taking part in strike ballots are located across England and Wales, and are putting out their results soon. Although the primary focus of the strikes is on pay, a significant number of teachers are leaving the profession out of dissatisfaction with the lack of resources, overworking, and stress.

Labour Response

To add to the political focus on education, Labour wants to use an opposition day to pass a motion that, if successful, would establish a Common select committee to examine the VAT on private school fees. The findings suggest that, as of now, there are 350,000 qualified teachers who are not currently teaching in the state sector. The money raised from this measure would be enough to cover the costs of training and employing an additional 6,500 teachers.

Bridget Phillipson, the Shadow Education Secretary, has stated that the “dangerous exodus of new teaching recruits could result in even greater teacher vacancies in the years to come and ultimately to lower standards in our schools.” She has stated that Labour's mission is to bring excellence to everyone, which is why they are making the proposal to end tax cuts for private schools in order to fund the additional teachers.

Conservative Argument

The Conservatives have denounced the Labour plan as “class war”, claiming that it would cause some private schools to close. Labour leader Keir Starmer has rebutted this, arguing that the scheme could raise up to £10 million alone from Rishi Sunak's former school, Winchester.

Government Response

The government spokesperson has stated that they are making the highest pay awards in the last generation, including an increase to starting salary of up to 8.9%. They also claim that the number of teachers in the state sector remains high, with 24,000 more working compared to 2010. Bursaries and levelling up premiums have been implemented to draw further attention to subjects like mathematics, science, and computing.

Conclusion

Labour are aiming to use their motion to bring attention to the investment necessary for schools, especially for staff, as well as their pledge on introducing VAT on private school fees. The Conservative party contends that the policy would have a detrimental effect on private schools, however Labour are hoping that the public will find the policy to be beneficial and popular. Source