The truth will always out.  Gordon Brown, the former ‘Iron Chancellor’, the economic maestro, who so stringently denied there would be any need for spending cuts, the man who branded David Cameron as ‘Mr 10%’, who would savagely cut expenditure….and the man that consistently stated in the House of Commons at PMQ’s and over the summer recess that the choice between Labour and the Conservatives boiled down to: ‘Tory cuts and Labour Investment’, is now the fastest ever convert on the road to damascas, as his right hand man, Ed Balls, has gone on the record to announce spending cuts in education!

Fascinating how Brown’s most loyal lietenant, seen by many as the key architect in election strategy, is first out of the traps to announce spending cuts.  Or first to be thrown under the bus…however you wish to view it!

Remember how Tony Blair said his priority was ‘Education, Education, Education’.  How that phrase sounds so hollow today.  How ironic that education is the first of the Government’s spending cuts to be announced.

There is a fascinating interview in the Sunday Times today.  It details how Labour plan to cut £2bn from the education budget.  That’s 5% of the total schools budget.  The Sunday Times quotes:  “Warning of post-election pay curbs, he added, (Ed Balls), : “If we are going to keep teachers and teaching assistants on the front line, that means we are going to have to be disciplined on public sector pay, including in education.” Teachers’ salaries have risen by 19% in real terms since 1997. Balls said that while teachers’ pay was set by an independent body, he was keen to ensure wage rises in the next three-year deal starting in 2011 were kept low”.

This will result in thousands of staff losing their jobs and frozen/low pay rises amongst teachers.  Most likely to be axed are those not directly teaching, including Headmasters, deputy headmasters, Assistant Heads, Heads of Year, Heads of Department.  Added to this are those Whitehall Officials that advise on curriculum development.

This will inevitably cause an outcry amongst teachers and their Unions over the coming weeks.  Expect to see, teachers balloting for strikes very soon.  ‘The winter of Discontent’ beckons.  Who suffers?  Our children and their education….and the future prospects for the economy as our future talent gets disrupted in its learning.  Sad times……..