Must try harder: education is still a vote loser for the Tories

The reluctance of the Conservative party to take credit for the success of its education reforms is a source of increasing bewilderment to me. With each passing year, the A-level and GCSE results of free schools and academies provide yet more evidence that liberating state schools from the dead hand of local authority control has had a transformational effect — and 2019 is no exception. Free schools such as the London Academy of Excellence in Stratford and Michaela Community School in Wembley have chalked up some of the best results in the country, while academy chains such as the Harris Federation and the City of London Academies Trust have cemented their places at the top of the league table. Yet, incredibly, education is still a vote loser for the Tories.

In the 2017 general election, Labour did unexpectedly well among 30- to 39-year-olds, with a 26-point lead over the Conservatives, and among 40- to 49-year-olds, with a five-point lead.