Ken Livingstone, said to be the people’s choice for London mayor, has never ventured far into the rocky terrain of education politics.
A recent interview in The Guardian helps explain his reticence. Ken, it seems, was once a trainee science teacher: “I made a terrible mistake,” he confessed. “In 1970 there was a national teacher shortage and they were desperate. The standard of the course was so low it wasn’t very much more demanding than A-level. Basically everyone who sat the exams passed unless they had a nervous breakdown or took drugs during them. It was a complete waste of taxpayers’ money.” With views like that, Labour should be backing Ken for mayor.
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