Why are popular perceptions of the NHS and the public education service so very different? Both, in their modern form, are the achievements of the Attlee government which have done most to transform British society for the better. Both have the potential to be politically contentious. Yet one is a sacrosanct institution to which politicians have to pledge commitment; the other is routinely criticised and is the target of politicians’ constant denigration.
It isn’t as if the NHS is without its critics. “NHS complaints up by 4.6 per cent” say the placards for my local paper. There are regular accounts of unsatisfactory service – indifferent doctors, uncaring nurses, dirty wards, poor catering and medical negligence. The BMA has even brought doctors out on strike.
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