While Gavin Williamson was up before the education select committee today, discussing their latest report into white, working-class boys, the National Education Union wasn’t taking the legitimate concerns of Tory MPs quite so seriously. The Nottingham branch of the union last night tweeted:
The Tories expressing concern for the education of working class children is like Dr Harold Shipman claiming he cared for his patients. Robert Halfon MP, together with his select committee, should do one. https://t.co/VODTXNwTe6
— Notts NEU (@NottsNUT) June 22, 2021
As new MP Brendan Clarke-Smith retorts, “You are unfit to represent teachers or to be involved in any way with the education of our children.”
The NUT isn’t the only one downplaying the plight of working class white boys. the UCU’s General Secretary Jo Grady yesterday took to Twitter to claim MPs’ concerns are about “whipping up racism”, not educational outcomes for children. Meanwhile neither unions have proffered any solutions of their own to deal with the scandal…
The NEU has been contacted for comment.
UPDATE: Rob Halfon has intervened after being targetted by the NUT tweet, telling Guido “it’s a pity the NEU seek to compare me with Harold Shipman”, and “I think they should do better than that”.
He also points out this isn’t his first run-in with the loony left NEU; in 2015 Guido reported on a green party candidate standing in Halfon’s constituency who said the Tories are not the party of workers, “unless u mean it like Hitler meant it”. At the time, the candidate targeting Jewish Halfon was general secretary of the Harlow NEU branch. He’s since been promoted to a National Executive Member of the union…
UPDATE II: The NEU branch has finally deleted the offending tweet and offered an apology:
Earlier today we made a tweet in very bad taste. We have deleted it. But we would like to apologise to everyone who was offended by it - and to our members for the mistake we made in tweeting it in the first place.
— Notts NEU (@NottsNUT) June 23, 2021
