LibLink – Nick Clegg: Scrapping free school lunches is an attack on struggling families

By The Voice | Fri 19th May 2017 - 1:30 pm

Nick Clegg writes with great passion in the Guardian about the Tory plans to scrap universal free infant school lunches:

So much for compassionate Conservatism. So much for helping the “just about managing”. During my time as deputy prime minister, I repeatedly blocked the Conservatives from proceeding with tax, welfare, education and pensions policies that did not cater for the neediest in society. I became wearily familiar with the Conservative party’s habit of placing greater priority on the needs of “their” voters than those of society at large.

…It’s less than a year since Theresa May stood outside No 10 Downing Street and declared that her mission was to lead a country that worked for everyone. Now that we know she wants to scrap universal infant school lunches – a measure proven to boost health and educational outcomes – while spending huge amounts of taxpayers’ money on new selective schools – a measure proven to damage social mobility – that statement looks hollower than ever.

You can read the full article here.

3 Comments

Jayne Mansfield 19th May '17 - 2:38pm

I remember Ed Balls’ ‘Free school meals campaign, when he wanted to step up an expansion to free infant school meals to a further half million children. He argued that free school meals would improve ‘health, concentration and behaviour’.

I very much supported this, but I remember many on here supporting the view of Mr Gove that it was an unfunded promise by the previous government.

Those extensions would have bolstered the evidence – base for the value of a good diet to health and development, and made it difficult for any party in government to ignore.
Andrew T 20th May '17 - 5:51pm

Shouldn’t free school meals be limited to children whose parents are on low incomes?
Arthur Trussel 28th May '17 - 11:56am

Margaret Thatcher- milk snatcher.
Theresa May – takes your dinner away.