End meritocracy myth and drop subsidies to fee-paying schools

THE most pernicious myth gaining traction as draconian cutbacks are implemented across a range of vital public services is the myth of meritocracy.

According to the myth, personal accomplishment is not a function of class or wealth but of grit, drive, and determination. Success, therefore, can be neatly ascribed to innate talent, intelligence and good old-fashioned hard work while money and privilege play only a minor, peripheral role.

Advocates of this thesis maintain that swingeing cuts to supports for the disadvantaged — community employment schemes, lone parents’ allowances, disability support services — don’t really matter that much because the people availing of these benefits can, to quote the Government’s tired mantra, do less with more and work harder to escape endemic poverty traps.