Author Archives: Paul Pettinger

Opinion: It is time to pick a fight and show we are serious about institutionalised faith based homophobia

By Paul Pettinger | Thu 26th April 2012 - 1:56 pm

At the next general election Liberal Democrats should look forward to being able to point to the introduction of same sex marriage as a Liberal Democrat achievement. Although the move is supported by some Conservatives, it has only happened because of Lib Dem pressure.

That the Party has made the issue such a high priority, especially when working with a conservative Party, helps to communicate to the public how much we care about equality for LGBT people, and is something that we should be able to draw collective pride. However, the Government is still failing in its commitment on page 29 of …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged LGBT rights, michael gove and schools | 54 Comments

Opinion: We have let neoliberals devastate state education, we must not let them do the same to the NHS

By Paul Pettinger | Sat 28th January 2012 - 11:45 am

To believe the Government’s hype, we are currently experiencing a liberal revolution in England’s education system – powers are being decentralised, with schools given more autonomy to innovate, while new education providers are adding further diversity to the state funded system by joining it through Academy sponsorship.

The uninitiated could be forgiven for believing Michael Gove’s claim that the evidence base shows the structure of the state funded school system is holding education back, as well as his recent assertion that opponents of Academies are “ideologues”, who uphold a “bigoted backward bankrupt ideology of a leftwing establishment that perpetuates division …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged academies, education, free schools and NHS | 67 Comments

Should religious worship be part of school assembly?

By Paul Pettinger | Wed 11th August 2010 - 2:20 pm

Last week LDV ran an article from Sara Bedford asking whether prayers should be a part of council meetings. The issue of compelling people to engage in religious worship is not just confined to Parliament or some of our more old fashioned council chambers, but affects a significant proportion of our population.

Unbeknown to many, all state maintained schools in England and Wales are legally required to provide their pupils with daily Collective Worship. In faith schools the worship is supposed to be provided in accordance with the school’s designated religion or religious denomination, while in all other schools …

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged collective worship, julian huppert, nick clegg and your freedom | 33 Comments

Social mobility: is the Coalition doing enough to encourage it?

Stephen Tall asks: "Did Nate Silver write in vain?"

Nick Clegg: "Of course the EU has to change"

"Mad, swivel-eyed loons": a top Tory on the Tories

Author Archives: Paul Pettinger

Opinion: It is time to pick a fight and show we are serious about institutionalised faith based homophobia

Opinion: We have let neoliberals devastate state education, we must not let them do the same to the NHS

Should religious worship be part of school assembly?

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Social mobility: is the Coalition doing enough to encourage it?

Stephen Tall asks: "Did Nate Silver write in vain?"

Nick Clegg: "Of course the EU has to change"

"Mad, swivel-eyed loons": a top Tory on the Tories

Author Archives: Paul Pettinger

Opinion: It’s the economy stupid

Opinion: It is time to pick a fight and show we are serious about institutionalised faith based homophobia

Opinion: We have let neoliberals devastate state education, we must not let them do the same to the NHS

Should religious worship be part of school assembly?

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