Some charity.

In fact, the charitable aspect of private education is primarily paid out by the parents who pay the fees. Because they have paid twice over for the education of each child. The state benefits from their non-takeup of a school place, and reimburses nothing.

The state sector has ample information on how many school-age children there are in any area. And it is true that some of those children will not take up their places. Yet we still manage to have thousands of kids travelling many miles each day because there is no local school place for them at all.

No no bloody marks to the state sector yet again.

Details here.

An amazing phrase.

In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man would have it poked out for monopolising vision.

An alternative plan would be to remove charitable status from all schools but to give a tax rebate to the equivalent cost, (NB not value), of a state education, (or a voucher if you prefer).

Newmania: “Well it is far from clear to me why an organisation which exists specifically to cement class advantage and monopolise opportunity should have any charitable status at all”

Missing the point with spectacular abandon there. These organisations exist specifically to provide education. Your objection is like complaining that a charity to help children from sink estates exists exclusively to help irritating lefty tossers spout bollocks in the media.

If table makers wanted to get tax breaks compared to chair makers, then they’d also need to jump through ridiculous hoops to justify them…

Tim adds: Note the “you have to liquidate” part.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article6702855.ece

These schools, best of luck to them, are businesses selling a service. Frankly, if they want a benefit from the government (tax freeness) they’re asking for all they get. They’re not doing anything charitable. They’re in business for crying out loud. Why the feck don’t they tell the government to piss off, and pay taxes like every other business has to?

I daresay that somebody will say their customers are having to pay for education twice or something like that, but it’s a silly argument. We’re all paying through the nose for everything the government does. Single people are forced to pay for the schooling of other peoples’ children. It’s just what living under a statist system is like.

Really, come on. These are businesses selling a luxury product to the luxury market. Charities? My arse.

It is not good argument for a low tax and free society that access to high earnings is fixed in childhood as it increasingly is . One response is to bring back Grammar schools and in all but name that’s where we are going and this will accelerate when the Conservatives take power. Academies wholeheartedly independent ( not under Labour’s boot ) , free schools and rigorous streaming are all getting on the way but bursaries from Private schools is an excellent part of the scene handled correctly and not punitively I would like to see the return of direct grants to complement the school places as ion the old days .

You may be right that there is some bureaucratic muddle here but your knee jerk defence of the privileged is simply inviting the red hoard to sweep down from their mountain homes and rain devastation on the land .

Irresponsible Worstall , take 200 lines

“ I must not defend privilege under the guise of Libertarianism
“ I must not defend privilege under the guise of Libertarianism
“ I must not defend privilege under the guise of Libertarianism

Etc. (200 times )