Politics is a good career

Originally published @ 11:44 am, Fri 16th Jul 2010

Currently I chair a committee that scrutinises the projects and services provided for young people in Nottingham.

We met on Wednesday and whilst most of it was heavy challenge and discussion over ambition, direction and dealing with cuts in money, there was a lighter session when 3 teenagers explained the NGY youth centre to start in Nottingham city centre next year. And they calmly offered assurance when challenged as to whether it would be used - on top of the large number of teenagers who hang around the Old Market Square, chatting and hugging, previous facilities run by church groups had soon filled up when it rained.

I wondered whether there was any interests in politics, and after the initial denial, one ventured that they were wondering whether they should put some events on, cos "politics is a good career". Still trying to work that one out.

I'm not sure Ed Balls thinks it's a good career after the treatment he got on BBC 1's "On The Record" last night. All questions about personal conduct - not one opportunity to get across ideas and values. Ed complained that it was pretty tedious stuff and he was not wrong. And it got worse. Smug and complacent presenter Jo Coburn did a review of the week's events in politics by placing them in the context of children's TV programmes.

The message of course from On the Record (and BBC 1's Question Time) is that politicians are not to be trusted and nothing significant can be done. Not sure how that boosts the ratings.

The sports productions take a different approach - the football is amazing and superhuman and you won't want to miss any of it. Granted, they now have a problem after England's failure in the world cup - solved apparently by Radio 5 presenters saying supporters should boycott the next England match (so as to listen to it on radio?).

But it is more serious than that. Ed Balls should have been given space to explore what was happening with Building Schools for the Future, rather than suffer Jo Coburn portraying him and Michael Gove as equally complicit.

A programme with that power could easily have given some force to the schools who were dropping maintenance as they got ready for a re-build, only to find themselves left with unexpected and significant problems.

Just as every education authority does, most especially trying to help the poorest communities with Area Based Grants, now having to make in-year cuts. Our commmittee reviewed the detail to which the schools, NHS, Police and employment agencies were gearing themselves up to deliver the next wave of progress. The determination and focus represented the ambition of the last government. The reduction of money represents the current.