Speaking at the launch of her economic plan, the foreign secretary is expected to describe seeing “children who failed and were let down by low expectations” during her time at Roundhay School in the 1990s. They are the latest in a series of allegations about her training to be shot down locally, this time by the council and local MP, who branded them “disgraceful”. Fabian Hamilton, who has been MP for Leeds North East, which includes Roundhay School, since 1997, said Truss “has shown she knows little about” the area. He said: “Firstly he wrongly suggested that Roundhay was a red seat on the wall and now he has criticized Labor teachers and staff at our school in Leeds. “Roundhay School has been an outstanding educational institution for decades and its staff and pupils are a real asset to our community. It’s a shame that Liz Truss decided to attack them today.” Previously, Truss’s claims that she grew up in a “red wall” seat were dismissed as “ridiculous”, while her comments about spending too much time learning about racism and sexism instead of reading or writing were also criticized. The school in north Leeds was rated ‘satisfactory’ by Ofsted inspectors during Truss’ time there and is now rated ‘outstanding’. Speaking about her plans to “rise in a Conservative way” on Thursday, Truss, who went to Oxford University after Roundhay School, is expected to add: “Everyone in our great country should be born with the same opportunities and be able to to know that the city they were born in has opportunities. Subscribe to First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7am. BST “My mission in politics is to give every child, every person, the best chance to succeed and that their success in life depends solely on their hard work and talents, not their background or where they come from ». Labor councilor Jonathan Prior, who leads Leeds City Council’s education executive board, said: “The only people who are letting children down are the Tories. I think it’s important to remember that funding per pupil has fallen by 8% since the Tories came in in 2010. And if she wins this contest, I’d love to see her reverse some of those school cuts.” “She might have gone to school here in Yorkshire – an education that put her in the running for Prime Minister, so it can’t be that bad – but, really, all she seems to be doing now is trashing the north to try and curry favor with friends at Westminster.’
