that's a great article kathleen.

i'd also chime in and say if we didn't pay taxes how would the selfless bastions of academia such as myself get our money from?

private education is all well and good in theory but you'd be surprised how many dumb****s i know who had a fortune spent on their education because their parents didn't want them going to mainstream schools. i could go into the ins and outs of why this happens but to put it simply, if mr and mrs S are paying a school £15,000 a year for little joey's teaching, he is going to do as well as mr and mrs S expect even if it means the teachers babysitting and doing most of the work for little joey...

then little joey gets into university where it's sink or swim and you know what, little joey ain't doing so well whereas those in public education who didn't have the opportunity for the best equipment in classrooms and the newest textbooks are used to having to work off their own steam...

make of that what you will but i'm sure i'm not the only person with a degree who has noticed how many private pupils do ridiculously well with regards to high school attainment then drop out within a few months of getting to uni because they can't hack it.