The Staggers

The New Statesman’s rolling politics blog

How the Tories broke their promises on the EMA

In January 2010 Cameron said: “We don’t have any plans to get rid of them.”

By George Eaton Published 19 January 2011 10:57

The Liberal Democrats' decision to break their pledge to vote against higher tuition fees means that Nick Clegg's party is rightly derided for its dishonesty and mendacity. But if anything, the Conservatives' long list of broken promises is even worse.

It was David Cameron who said that he had "no plans" to raise VAT (before increasing this regressive tax to 20 per cent), who promised that he wouldn't "change child benefit" (before abolishing it for higher earners) and who called for an end to the "top-down reorganisations of the NHS" (before announcing the biggest reforms since the health service was founded).

Ahead of today's vote on the abolition of the Education Maintenance Allowance, it's worth remembering that this is another area in which the Tories have broken their election promises.

As the video below shows, at a Cameron Direct event in January 2010, the Conservative leader said: "We've looked at educational maintenance allowances and we haven't announced any plan to get rid of them." Challenged to firm up his pledge, he added: "I said we don't have any plans to get rid of them . . . it's one of those things the Labour Party keep putting out that we are but we're not."

Cameron wasn't the only prominent Conservative to come out in favour of the EMA. In an interview with the Guardian just before the election, Michael Gove said: "Ed Balls keeps saying that we are committed to scrapping EMA. I have never said this. We won't."

The abolition of the EMA, which paid up to £30 a week to 16-to-18-years-olds living in households whose income is less than £30,800 a year, is likely to lower working-class participation in education and decrease social mobility. Gove may argue that there is little proof that the EMA makes more pupils stay on, but the National Foundation for Educational Research estimates an extra 10 per cent do.

That may not sound like many, but at a time of high youth unemployment it prevents up to 60,000 more from joining the dole queue.

There is also some evidence to suggest that the EMA benefits the economy as a whole by increasing the productivity of those who would have stayed on anyway (EMA recipients are required to attend 100 per cent of their lectures).

In a recent piece for the NS, Gavin Kelly noted that while the removal of the 10p income-tax band had cost the average household £232, the abolition of the EMA will cost pupils as much as £1,200. Taken in conjunction with the large cuts to tax credits, this could be the closest the coalition comes to its own "10p moment".

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Tags: EMA David Cameron

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17 comments

Wed, 2011-01-19 20:08 — ang (not verified)

In the commons today, Gove defended the scrapping of EMA by saying the economic situation made it unavoidable. Yet a perceptive Labour MP reminded him that when they promised to keep EMA the deficit was worse than it is today. Back of the net!
I thought Andy Burnham was brilliant today. Future prime minister?

Wed, 2011-01-19 20:36 — Lou (not verified)

Ang,

I never considered Andy in the recent leadership election but I am impressed. He really gets to grips with his ministerial brief, he did in health and he's doing a great job in education.

I'd be happy to see him as PM.

Wed, 2011-01-19 20:42 — swatantra

I voted for Andy Burnham.
We needed a gritty northerner to stand up to a couple of softy southerners with their public school ways.

Fri, 2011-01-21 19:09 — jie4v7i14

A disgrace from start to finish, getting rid of this.

THIS IS THE ONE THING THAT LABOUR HAS HAD THE MOST POSITIVE EFFECT IN BRITANNIA ON, IN THEIR TIME.

Some people, obviously, have not experienced their marvellous effects.

And that cretin of an ex-headmistress, talking as she did the othere day, just shows she has her own hidden agenda - to be selected for a Tory safe seat in the future. The disgraceful cow.

Wed, 2011-01-19 22:36 — Steven (not verified)

What stupid twats. Don't vote for them. End of.

Wed, 2011-01-19 23:25 — Sensual Man (not verified)

You lot should just be done with and vote for the Green Party, the true socialists lol

Thu, 2011-01-20 08:14 — Luddite (not verified)

Many on the political-left are starting to sound like a spoilt child, thats just had it's overused dummy taken from it's lips.

Sun, 2011-01-23 09:15 — Soapbox Fah-Fah

I think Chancellor of the Exchquer was right to do away with EMA funding.

From a meet and greet, most students receiving EMA spend it on drinks, fags and their 'weekly bag of drugs'.

With the Coalition Government funding new highspeed internet in Great Britain. Student will not have to spend money on books and other studying aids!

Nice one George Osborne!

Sat, 2011-01-22 00:11 — joanne mainwaring (not verified)

david cameron is a joke and a liar and a heart bastard to think he had a disabled son and now dares to mock disabled persons and there carers and action plans wat i will say anythink happens to my daughter and i will blame u and make sure u r sentence to a long sad life of misery u dispicable human well not human just a being and a definetly has bin and definetly wont be ever again FUCKING HITLER

Sun, 2011-01-23 14:34 — Steve (not verified)

Time for a civil war?

Wed, 2011-01-19 11:16 — Graeme (not verified)

Cameron, Clegg, Gove, all of them, just lie, lie, and lie.

Sun, 2011-01-23 14:56 — graham (not verified)

Changing the title from EMA to whatever means tested award the govt are planning is not all bad. When those who no longer get the benifit, and they will be in the majority, leave college, and they will, in their droves, are they going to be added to the already rising unemployment stats?

http://mitchell-images-blog.blogspot.com/

Wed, 2011-01-19 11:57 — Andrew Tennant (not verified)

Arguably, they are not scrapping it, merely reforming it so it's better targeted at the most financially sensitive 10% and those for whom the present EMA does not provide sufficient support and incentive.

Wed, 2011-01-19 12:00 — swatantra

Its true. Few of the promises kept. Dave is just using the downturn as an excuse to slash everything. Now he's sntched EMAs from the mouths of babes so students will have to walk miles to their courses, go without food, and sleep on floors. Its a disgrace. Whereas bankers are enjoying the highlife on their bonuses.

Wed, 2011-01-19 13:54 — elrob

Lying, social security stealing, Fat cat banker supporting Tories. Who would have though eh? Well Ok, anyone with at least a light bulb for a brain.

Cameron uses the oldest mendacious politician trick in the book: "We have no plans to do x". This can always be used to mean: We will do x. They can say, "We did not lie, because we did not have plans; but now we have". Then cite anything from some particular research to the good ol' "Labour mess we're clearing up".

I remember Labour posters in 1997: We will not raise income tax in the first Labour Parliament: I knew this meant taxes would go up, just not income taxes. Politicians in genera, especially when from a PR background – Mandelson, Cameron…

Bunch of liars. They got 36% of the vote with all the money, all the old Tory press, against a deeply unpopular PM, a recent deep recession, highish unemployment; and yet just 36% of the vote. They know they'll have little chance of doing this rightwing agenda; so full steam ahead. Backed by Lib Dems with "progressive" politics. I hate them more and more.

Wed, 2011-01-19 13:55 — elrob

I meant to write:
Lying, social security stealing, Fat cat banker supporting Tories. Who would have thought it, eh? Well Ok, anyone with at least a light bulb for a brain.

Wed, 2011-01-19 15:38 — Lou (not verified)

Gove has just shouted, and it was a shout not your usual ya boo, at a member on the opposite bench to 'sit down!' like the member was a naughty child.

He is making the usual condescending speech and asking what policies Labour agree with, rhyming off all the education policy but not mentioning EMA at all. Twenty minutes on his feet thus far.

I'm a pacifist but you just want to punch him, he's such an arrogant, patronising, odious man and he's not fit for his ministerial role.