Comments on: The class politics of free school meals http://liberalconspiracy.org/2008/10/02/the-class-politics-of-free-school-meals/ Left-wing news, opinion and activism Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:20:21 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 By: john b http://liberalconspiracy.org/2008/10/02/the-class-politics-of-free-school-meals/#comment-21967 john b Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:10:23 +0000 http://www.liberalconspiracy.org/?p=1374#comment-21967 More amusingly, there's also a great deal of opposition to PFI from halfwitted right-wingers who're grumpy that a Labour government are doing it. More amusingly, there’s also a great deal of opposition to PFI from halfwitted right-wingers who’re grumpy that a Labour government are doing it.

]]> By: Andrew Adams http://liberalconspiracy.org/2008/10/02/the-class-politics-of-free-school-meals/#comment-21965 Andrew Adams Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:04:26 +0000 http://www.liberalconspiracy.org/?p=1374#comment-21965 To be fair I think there is still a lot of opposition to PFI on the left outside the Labour Party. To be fair I think there is still a lot of opposition to PFI on the left outside the Labour Party.

]]> By: Liam Murray http://liberalconspiracy.org/2008/10/02/the-class-politics-of-free-school-meals/#comment-21947 Liam Murray Thu, 02 Oct 2008 11:59:39 +0000 http://www.liberalconspiracy.org/?p=1374#comment-21947 Policies are rarely judged solely on merit or in ignorance of who's advancing them. It became a media trope 4/5 years ago that policies that polled very well among the public dropped from view when they were revealed as Tory policies. Likewise with things like PFI and independent schooling - these things were an anathema to the left until Blair started to talk about them. They didn't suddenly get whole-hearted support but the opposition became more conditional and muted and the left were happy to turn a blind eye which they wouldn't have done had a Tory government implemented them - such is politics. Hence the ridicule the policy attracted when it was pushed by a fringe political group (with, you must admit, a range of far more serious and significant policies in the drawer) but the acquiescence (if not support) when it comes from somewhere else.... Policies are rarely judged solely on merit or in ignorance of who’s advancing them. It became a media trope 4/5 years ago that policies that polled very well among the public dropped from view when they were revealed as Tory policies.

Likewise with things like PFI and independent schooling – these things were an anathema to the left until Blair started to talk about them. They didn’t suddenly get whole-hearted support but the opposition became more conditional and muted and the left were happy to turn a blind eye which they wouldn’t have done had a Tory government implemented them – such is politics.

Hence the ridicule the policy attracted when it was pushed by a fringe political group (with, you must admit, a range of far more serious and significant policies in the drawer) but the acquiescence (if not support) when it comes from somewhere else….

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