Private privilege is holding UK back

Private schools educate around 6 per cent of the UK’s school population. Comparisons with state schools are not straightforward, but in outcomes such as exam results, prowess in arts and sport, and rates of admission to universities and the professions, the success of feepaying schools is unquestionable: 42 per cent of Oxbridge places go to private pupils, who also make up 29 per cent of all MPs, 51 per cent of leading journalists, 74 per cent of judges and a third of 2016 Team GB Olympic medallists.

It’s possible to celebrate the achievements of individuals such as Bafta winner Olivia Colman yet recognise that this narrow cohort’s collective winnings are a problem. The UK is chronically socially immobile. More than in most comparable countries, a person’s life chances are determined by the status of their parents. This is not only unjust, but also a waste of human resources, which holds back progress of all kinds.

There are steps that can be taken straight away. The Scottish government plans to strip private schools of certain tax breaks. Measures such as adding VAT to school fees in England (included in Labour’s 2017 manifesto) should be taken forward. So should the use of positive action schemes. The sharp elbows of fee-paying parents don’t just serve to shield their own children, but also push others out of the way. Countering such behaviour is in the interests of the country as a whole.