Licence fee-payers have every right to ask why their taxes are funding a national broadcaster with such a poor record around its male stars Daily Telegraph Ever since Jimmy Savile was posthumously exposed as a prolific sexual predator almost exactly 15 years ago, the BBC has been hit by an extraordinary number of scandals involving major male stars. Huw Edwards . Rolf Harris. Stuart Hall. Then there was the sacking from MasterChef of Gregg Wallace, and the mysterious disappearance from Radio 2 of Scott Mills. Not to mention the forthcoming trial of former Radio 1 DJ Tim Westwood. And now, in the space of a week, we’ve had the conviction for rape of Russell Brand , and some extremely serious allegations about David Walliams – which he denies. Both these men were once big BBC stars, too. For the reputation of our increasingly beleaguered national broadcaster, this is obviously catastrophic. Why, though, is the BBC so remarkably unlucky? What on earth makes it such a magnet for s...
Lower-income families may prioritise children’s happiness, but academic achievement helps create the economic circumstances that foster it Daily Telegraph If you’re interested in cultural differences within the British population, the work of the Independent Inquiry into White Working Class Educational Outcomes is essential reading . Its polling, focus groups and interviews with white working-class children and their parents, reveals a fundamental cultural outlook that explains a great deal, not just about the educational and economic performance of those children, but about Britain’s current economic and political condition. The key finding is that white working-class children and their parents are much less likely than everyone else in the country to think that passing exams and doing well at school is important. This is a class issue. Fifty-seven per cent of white ABC1 parents, otherwise known as the middle classes, say that achieving good grades is a key part of succes...