Passing out parade.

I like politicians, but looking at the size of some of them like Eric Pickles, I couldn't eat a whole one. I like them irrespective of their trading colour, red, blue or yellow. Though I must admit to having much more of a preference for the green variety. I listen to what they have to say, then when the glaze has gone from my eyes - I muse about which planet they are from. 

There is this constant theme - you ask a question of whoever is in power. Then, what is supposed to be an informative answer, always starts with how bad it was under the previous incumbents. In other words, all answers start with an excuse for not being able to put right a problem. I don't need a lecture on the performance of the previous government - I had a few years to absorb their level of performance. Tell me what you have achieved!

Now call me old and cynical - but we elected the latest party based upon a list of promises about how to make things better. I don't mind if they are unable to fix the issues or to improve the situation. But for Christ sake when things start to get worse a wise man stops digging. But we are in megalomania land. 

By way of an example, last night I watched "Question Time" on the BBC. There he was Michael Gove - the man from Nightmare on Elm Street. He was answering a question when he suddenly issued a dismissive statement "yadda yadda yadda" then went on to lecture everyone in the room about the school curriculum. The question posed was "do you ever listen to the views of other people" - obviously not!

To paraphrase Gove, he famously suggested "by the age of 6, children of low ability from affluent homes were out-performing brighter children from poor backgrounds." In reality what he actually said to the Commons Education Select Committee was "In effect, rich thick kids do better than poor clever children when they arrive at school and the situation as they go through gets worse." your child's education is in his hands!

What was that anthem of the Blair - Brown years, ah yes - "It can only get better" By the time it came to an end. The words of the anthem proved to be very prophetic. It could only get better, or so we thought. Now we have the Con-a-Lib consortium. The one time we need them to do a U-Turn because we are heading for financial disaster. Like the passing out parade of a thousand highly trained troops, Mr and Mrs Osborn's little lad is the only one in step! I know I should not judge a book by its cover - but I have the feeling that he should not be aloud to issue guidance on stacking chairs, never mind fiscal policy!

Later...