Teachers Ignorant About The Real World - So Says A Superfluous Politician

Some of the basic lessons in life were often taught to children by their parents using a proverb, it is highly likely that everyone can remember at least one from their younger days and the wisdom that it was meant to impart. Many of these proverbs are as true today as the when they were first penned and this can be taken as proof of their timelessness and veracity.

Alas, as always, there are exceptions and these can be found in abundance in the world of politics where everyone appears to defy the eternal verities that keeps the world on an even keel for the vast majority of citizens. In this peculiar world, the inhabitants are convinced that they are a different species that are allowed to look down on the mass of plebeians and where the normal rules don't apply to them.

"People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones" immediately sprang to mind when I read that a politician with a work history that consists only of bean counting accused the entire teaching profession of knowing "absolutely nothing about the world of work".

For Vince Cable, the world of work consisted of being an economic advisor to the Kenyan government which was, and still is, regarded as one of the most corrupt kleptocracies on the planet, as well as being one of the most blood soaked dictatorships in Africa. He followed this with similar positions in the British government finally becoming head bean counter for the giant oil company Shell.

Cable has a well deserved reputation as an unprincipled 'flip flopper' having started his political career as a Labour activist and local councilor before defecting to the Social Democratic Party, these Social Democrats went on to join the Liberals to form the ludicrously named Liberal Democrat Party which is blighting public life today. He is currently reverting to type by promoting the hard left socialists policies of his youth.

He may be right about some teachers not having much experience in the world of work but in some subjects it isn't required. The skill of imparting knowledge is more important, especially in the earlier years. Experience in the world of work is not essential for teaching algebra for example or for teaching the basic scientific principles of chemistry, physics or biology.

Cable made his insulting remarks to representatives from the manufacturing industry who rightly pointed out that students are leaving school with unacceptably low skill levels in literacy and numeracy. This renders them unsuitable for employment unless expensive remedial training is carried out.

It is obvious that Vince Cable is being a typical politician by passing the buck for the appallingly low educational standards in Britain's schools and blaming the teachers instead of the disastrous education policies of his and the previous government.

Politicians, especially those with no experience in the world of work, nor the teachers unions, have any business in deciding Great Britain's education policy for the simple reason that they cannot be trusted to keep their ideology out of the classroom. Outside of the standard basic curricular, business leaders and wealth creators together with local authorities should have the biggest say in deciding education policy.

Politicians, with their attendant armies of career bureaucrats, are self perpetuating, they can only expand their empires and further interfere in areas where they have no experience and where they are not required. It may justify their existence but they are an impediment to the efficient running of any business and its ability to create wealth and jobs.

Vince Cable is the Secretary of State for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, a totally unnecessary department that has been created purely to accommodate superfluous politicians like himself and to make them look important.

Along with Cable, none of his ministers, save one, has any experience in the real world of work, with one of his ministers barely out of school. How these people are supposed to legislate in order to help business people create wealth and jobs is beyond comprehension.

Its worth taking a little time to look at Cables team and their CV's:

David Willetts is his Minster of State for Universities and Science, Innovation and Space, his qualifications and experience in the world of work consists of.....absolutely nothing. After getting the inevitable Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) degree at Oxford University he went straight into party politics and was an MP at 36.

Michael Fallon is his Minister of State for Business and Enterprise, he graduated with a degree in Classics and ancient history and like his colleague Mr. Willetts, he has zero experience in the real world of work. He went from school straight into party politics and become an MP at 31.

Mathew Hancock is his Minister of State for Skills and Enterprise, he got the required PPE at Exeter University and worked briefly at the family business before becoming a bean counter at the Bank of England. He became advisor to the Chancellor of the Exchequer at 27 becoming an MP at 32. He is still only 35 years old.

Jo Swinson is Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Employment Relations, Consumer and Postal Affairs. Her experience in the world of work consists of a very brief career in PR and marketing before standing for parliament at the tender age of 21, she became an MP at 25 and currently holds the title of  'Baby of the House' at 34 years old.

Lord Younger of Leckie is a hereditary peer and he is appointed to Vince Cables Ministry. When he is not sitting in the House of Lords he is Parliamentary Under Secretary State for Intellectual Property.

Which brings us to the only person in the Ministry with any experience in the world of work. He is Lord Livingstone who is Minister of State for Trade and Investment.

At 19 he graduated with a degree in economics and became an economist at Arthur Anderson. He went on to become chief economist at the Independent newspaper before going to the Bank of America and then the private equity company 3i. He entered corporate development at Dixon's group becoming the youngest FTSE 100 Finance Director at 32. He was a key player in creating PC World and Freeserve.
He went to join BT World, becoming CEO for retail division and then CEO of the entire BT group.

With this impressive Curriculum Vitae he puts his colleagues to shame and it is the British peoples loss that he is not running the entire department instead of the Cable. It would be interesting to know how his performance in government matches that of the political pygmies he shares his department with.

It is without doubt that there are bad teachers and some that are ideologically driven - it is this noisy minority that are allowed to get away with tainting the entire profession by a spineless political class who are inexperienced, incompetent and in many cases share the ideology of the recalcitrant teachers.

In conclusion it must be noted that where experience is an absolute necessity is in the world of politics and this is where it is sadly lacking. The current crop of MP's mainly consists of ideological, agenda driven political clones barely out of school, who's main objective is taking political power, keeping it and imposing their personal agendas on an unwilling population.

Regardless of party affiliation, they all look the same and they all talk the same, they use the same media management techniques and speak in the same idiosyncratic language - this is where a sentence can mean one thing one day and something totally different the next. They often use the same phrases and soundbites and all are masters in the art of spin, obfuscation, deceit and outright lying.

The people can put this right at the next election by voting them out in exchange for people who have at least spent a modicum time in the real world of work.

And finally some other proverbs that apply to Vince Cable:

"You can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear"

"A bad workman always blames his tools"

"A little learning is a dangerous thing"

"A young idler makes an old beggar"

"A fool at forty is a fool forever"


Here's and interesting take on politicians from the Daily Mail.  Ouch!