When the controversial VAT hike on independent schools was first introduced, Labour said the measure was designed to make more funding available for more teachers. Most people already knew this was a smoke-and-mirrors excuse as the real reason was political class warfare – especially on the aspirant and hard-working professional classes – at its most naked, egregious and often hypocritical.

“Private schools prop up the class system in society,” said Labour’s Diane Abbott, while also admitting she sent her son to a fee-paying school.

The latest private school closure and pupil drop-out figures last week from Independent Schools Council, basing their findings on a survey of its own member schools, make for celebratory, lip-smacking reading if you are a signed-up Labour class warrior – such as John McDonnell, MP for Hayes and Harlington – who believes private education is immoral. He has backed a ban on the existence of any private schools arguing that “private schools don’t need to exist, and should not exist.”

Labour’s Waterloo Victory

According to a report in The Times, the number of pupils in independent schools is down by more than 30,000, with some year groups reporting a 7% drop in attendance. However, these findings disguise an even bleaker national picture. The Department for Education published its own figures revealing a more than 7.5% fall in numbers — down by 43,126 …