Rob Wilson

The EU Referendum has served to emphasise the huge divisions which exist across our country. One of the most prominent and significant of these divisions is the disparity between those who are seemingly economically comfortable and those who struggle on a daily basis. There are some who characterise these struggles as a natural conclusion of the austerity measures pursued by Coalition and majority Conservative Governments. If only it were that simple. The EU Referendum brought to the surface decades of growing anguish from sections of the country's working people: wages that never seem to rise coupled with increased pressure on local public services – a double whammy of discontent. This is not a new phenomenon.

As part of Ed Miliband’s modestly-titled plan to ‘rebuild the middle class’, shadow Education Secretary Tristram Hunt this week set out Labour’s new policy for raising standards of teaching. A Labour Government elected in 2015, he announced, would introduce a system of licensing for teachers, requiring them to ‘undertake regular professional development throughout their careers in order to keep their skills and knowledge up to date’. From the party that brought you a quality control regime that saw just 17 teachers struck off during 13 years in government, this latest wheeze, we are asked to believe, will help deliver ’a world class teacher in every classroom’.