This week has been a little odd for Politics. With Gordon Brown out of the country in Afghanistan Cameron didn’t really have anyone to criticise. Well he to be honest he didn’t get the chance. Lord Ashcroft’s taxes seemed to be last thing the leader of the opposition needed.

Lord Ashcroft, a major donor to the Conservative party, has had way in which he pays taxes under question for years. Now under the freedom of information act, he was forced to reveal his finances. It turns out all of his donations to the Conservative party were legit. Good news for the Tory leader, guess again, it seems that he has “nom-dom” status and hasn’t pad any taxes on his huge wealth (in foreign bank accounts) whilst being a peer in the lords and resuming as a resident in the UK. The general public don’t seemed to be impressed. It just makes the Tories look like the same old party, full of rich members who only look out for themselves and each other’s well being.

According to William Hague and David Cameron they had no idea he was doing this. This could well be the truth, but despite the media’s continual pursuit of his finances, neither Hague nor Cameron thought to ask Ashcroft what he was doing. When asked whether he knew, Hague said he only found out two months ago. Cameron said he knew, but only found out one month ago. So it seems they either got their stories mixed up or for a whole month, Hague, a top and major party official decided to keep the information from his leader for around a month. It doesn’t show great communication between the leader and his cabinet. And this has started to show in the Tories with their failing campaign and slides in the polls.

Education was a major policy point, mainly for the Tories and the Lib Dems. Nick Clegg has promised 2.5bn pounds to schools and head teachers, allowing more freedoms and control over the schools, but expects results and higher success. It would also devote more money to schools who accept and support children from poorer and troubled backgrounds in an attempt to get more from disadvantaged children.

This is a little different from Michael Gove’s plans for the Tories. It seems he wants a reverse to traditional schooling, with smaller classes and more focus on “traditional” subjects, such as poetry. Now I’m not saying everyone should be doing media studies and doing work on computer and in group work, but have the Tories gone mad? Technology and alternative types of learning are now hailed as great ways of teaching, but do the Tories think all of that should be reversed? He said to the times newspaper “Most parents would rather their children had a traditional education, with children sitting in rows, learning the kings and queens of England, the great works of literature, proper mental arithmetic, algebra by the age of 11” and continued saying how he was a “traditionalist” when it came to the curriculum. It just seems like they want everyone to have the schooling they had, and have the same experiences. It just seems that they are a confused party. So they’re ‘new’ Tories, but it seems their policies are the same old story.

Gordon Brown has been on a well-timed trip to Afghanistan this week before he appeared before the Chilcot inquiry. Is it to cover up and perhaps take attention away from the fact he was going to be at the Chilcot inquiry? Of course it was, but you can’t have ago at him for going any way. It seems this Iraq problem just won’t go away for the Labor party, and rightly so. There needs to be some real answers and some real apologies to the public for the war in Iraq. The debate is one so long I sharnt get into it, but it has been seven years now, and only now are we having this inquiry.

As well as watching Question time this week, I also watched first time voters question time on BBC three. This was really interesting, and hopefully they do another one. The main points seem to be lack of connection between voters and today’s youth. Politics and the younger generation don’t seem to mix any more. Don’t get me wrong, my generation definitely cares, but it seems to be on single issues rather than politics as a broad spectrum. But as one of the gusts pointed out, he was tired of people saying that. He felt in today’s modern world with all of the tools we have at our finger tips, we as a generation should do more to get involved and takeinterest. I’m not sure which side I’m on, but I really hope my generation doesn’t not care, and it is a depressing thought If it’s the truth.

That’s all for this week in politics. As the PM is back this week there should be a lot of good goings on in Westminster, so ill have plenty to report on. Follow me on twitter @ http://twitter.com/willgrant99