Is it the quality of ministers or the spin doctors who brief them that reveals how ignorant politicians so often are?
Take the latest from Ruth Kelly. Everyone assumed she would have a fair grip on colleges when she was whisked from the skills beat at the Treasury to be Secretary of State for Education and Skills. So jaws dropped all round Sanctuary Buildings when she asked a senior civil servant: “Will you please explain to me why parents send their children to FE?”
Let’s hope Ms Kelly is better informed as she trudges from door to door hoping for all those votes from the thousands of “FE” parents in her Bolton West constituency.
