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ARTICLE SUMMARY

Rural schools order 'hypocritical'

Ministers were accused of hypocrisy when they ordered local councils to keep rural schools open - after backing more closures last month.

RURAL SCHOOLS ORDER 'HYPOCRITICAL'

31.01.08, 1:14am

As a country we really need an upfront debate about what we want our country to look like, and stop letting things just happen by drift.

It needs to be an honest debate, somethings cost serious money and might have less effect than we imagine. Are we prepared to pay for that ?

Do we want to village life to continue, or are we happy for villages to die and rot, and have 99% of the pouplation live in crowded towns ?

If we are serious about keeping villages going then they need schools - small schools - uneconomic post offices, subsidised shops, good public transport, and live-in police. And we will have to stop building huge new estates everytime a builder buys a field.

At the moment all these things are being eaten away by stealth. http://com1.runboard.com/bhomeland

• Posted by: DanVoxReport Comment

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RURAL SCHOOL CLOSURES

30.01.08, 9:32pm

This all part of Broon's policy, carried on from Bliar's in giving larger grants to labour voting areas than rural ones.
Our local council had the second lowest grant in the country last year, and the lowest this year. This is the rich south containing a great many pensioners and low paid agricultrural workers The average wages in this area are among the lowest in the country, but we are in the RICH south so we get low grants.

• Posted by: exnomadReport Comment

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