Ed drops the Ball too early

So the gauntlet was thrown down when Gordon Brown was finally forced to concede planned cuts in public spending. And first out of the block to take up the challenge of laying out reduced spending plans was Education Secretary, Ed Balls. On Sunday, he made public his proposed educational reforms, including getting rid of a sizeable amount of head teachers and federating schools. Balls probably thought he was seizing the day by being so quick off the mark and, in a sense, his willingness to make his plans known is admirable.

But had he thought about it just a little longer, he’d have realised that it was in his best interests to hold fire. Because education, like healthcare, is the sacred cow of British society. While the electorate will grudgingly consider cuts to transport, environment and even defence, they will not be so open-minded when it comes to slashing education budgets. Balls should’ve considered this and waited before adding his controversial irons to an already raging fire. Perhaps Osborne’s blooper will overshadow Balls’ blunder and the education secretary will remember that he was once a spin doctor extraordinaire before his next unnecessary venture in the press.