If it Ain't broke, Don't fix it.

I guess it's on days like these, when the PM is feeling a little less than 100%, the my role as Deputy PM kicks in and I need to earn my crust. So whilst he sleeps off his ailments, let me just re-iterate. The British Education system is without doubt one of the best in the world. Why else would so many international students flock to take advantage?!

So yes, the PM is right. If it ain't broke, we don't need to fix Education itself. We do however have some problems to solve that we will of course inherit.

1. The first of those is to re-dress the balance internally on behalf of English students who find themselves in the crazy and unique position of being forced to pay full fees wherever they study in Britain, whereas, for example, EU students will pay if they study in England, but will pay around a third studying in Wales and NOTHING if studying in Scotland. Of course, this disparity already exists, but is made all the more obvious with the new level of fees. The same is of course true with the Scots, who will not pay in their own territory, whilst the Welsh will pay a maximum of around a third no matter where they study in the UK.

It is difficult to find any justification for this disparity, but one thing is for sure, International Students living outside of the UK but within the EU, if they should not be paying the same as those international students outside the EU, then they should certainly be paying more than British citizens to study within their own shores.

2. Whilst on University degrees and as the fight for work grows more intense, we should give Degrees a 'difficulty' rating to help ensure the right graduates get a level chance of securing employment. Is a First Class Honours Degree in Equestrian Studies better than a 2.2 in Biochemistry? (extreme example, but hopefully get the drift). Of course it is likely to be if the graduate wants to work for an Equestrian Centre, but to employers with a mass of applications for one or two positions, it would help level the playing field for the selection process.

3. Next, we need to get back to basic values. Not sure who's quote this is, but the person who pointed out... "the man who said it's not the winning, but the taking part that counts...must have been the loser"...was absolutely spot on. We must re-instill in our schools that we live in a competitive society and that what they face in years to come is a dog-eat-dog world. No more "It's the taking part that counts" stuff. Let's make them want to be the best they can be. Let's stop giving them a get-out-clause that encourages no effort. This is not about culling the weak. It's about helping our kids to become the best brain surgeon, or to become the best shelf stacker in the Supermarket!...if that's what they want to be.

4. A campaign promise I have made is the banning of 'pushy' parents. We've all seen them. We all watch out of the corner of our eyes and say nothing. We watch their children quiver with fear or embarrassment...and we all watch as their children gather favour over ours in the school play, or concert, or carol service, or team...year after year, until ours leave school and time has robbed them of their experience/opportunity to show that they too have talent.

5. Finally, all blue/green mottled backgrounds used for school photos will be rounded up and burnt. All those portraying themselves as School photographers should pass a compulsory examination themselves demonstrating a minimum requirement of creativity in composition, understanding of lighting, understanding of kids and what makes them tick, proof that they were at one point in time, a child, have at some point in time been a parent and finally they must be able to chant a mantra from memory denouncing said mottled backgrounds as an instrument of the devil.

I have already instructed Seamus and his band of merry men to go out in search of said backgrounds and they will be leaving their calling cards in an attempt to privately shame users and abusers. The card will carry the words of the mantra for them to learn.

Meantime, Seamus, as you will see, has taken on board the seriousness of his role for the party and has already commenced his study of politics, hoping very soon to be able to advise the PM on all matters Irish.