Comment from The Northern Echo: This is no choice at all

Last week, Labour and Conservatives slugged it out over their particular brand of choice in the NHS.

And yesterday, the Conservatives introduced the concept of choice in primary and secondary schools and sixth form colleges.

The parties are misreading public opinion. The electorate has no affection for the concept of choice.

People don't want to be bothered about which hospital they go to. What they want to see is that the hospital near them will treat them well and treat them promptly.

And parents don't want to be bothered which school their children attend. What they want to see is that their local school offers an excellent standard of education.

What all of us desire is that public services are the same high standard wherever we live and whatever our circumstances. The political parties should be striving to eliminate choice as an issue, rather than widening its scope.

Yesterday's education policies from the Conservatives are particularly baffling.

Given the option, parents will naturally want to send their children to the better-performing schools. But because the number of places are finite, the better schools will be over-subscribed. It will not be the parents, but the schools who will be given the real choice.

Such a state of affairs will not help those disadvantaged under the present system. Instead, it will widen the existing divide, leaving many parents with no choice whatsoever and leaving many schools without hope for improvement.

Such a free-for-all must be opposed.

THE North-East laid on a wonderful arena, corporate support and a capacity crowd for England's day-night cricket international against New Zealand.

The scene was set for a wonderful sporting occasion. Sadly, the action on the field lasted less than four hours.

Once again, the North-East did English cricket proud. What a shame that, with the notable exception of Steve Harmison, England's cricketers could not do the North-East proud.