Further education—a poverty‐stricken future

Well, it's all the fault of the miners. Not forgetting those damned traindrivers, of course. Or was it the beastly sheikhs? Uncivilised lot, never could trust 'em, and very few have been to the best schools either. Though some have — but it only seems to make them worse. On the other hand, it can't have been them, because they're our friends. Everybody tells us so. No, it must have been those grasping Israelis, with their un‐British imperialist expansionist greed. Wider still and wider shall their bounds be spread … No, wrong song. We were quite right to cut off their arms supplies: they can't seriously have expected spare parts as well, when we sold them tanks. If they were British, they'd know what you could do with string, fuse wire, and a soldering iron. Our so‐called ‘partners’ in the Common Market haven't helped much cither. What can you expect? Only thirty years ago half of them were trying to destroy us, and civilisation with us — and the other half got beaten in double‐quick time, so that they didn't have to share the burden. Except of course the Irish; but you know what they're like.