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6 June 2016 1 min read

"Over the past few years, there has been a steady increase in the perception that education and examinations are less important than they really are. This has been driven by the relentless increase in visibility of ill-educated sports people and celebrities of all sorts. So I'm delighted that Michael Gove has come out strongly against Simon Cowell, who made one of the most crass public comments I have heard for a long time, to the effect that education doesn't matter, you just need to get lucky. The problem of course is that more young people listen to Simon Cowell that to the Secretary of State. And I'm reminded of what golfer Arnold Palmer said about being lucky: 'The harder I practice, the luckier I get.' Success requires hard work, whether you are a footballer, a model, an actor, and in these jobs hard work is not enough, you need luck as well - and most people are not lucky in that way. If everyone had their Warhol '15 minutes of fame', the outcome would be predictable - no one would be famous."

John Freeman on the importance of education

"A teenager who is relaxed about money isn't likely to stay that way. Most 15-year-olds say they are comfortable with their finances. Most 18- to 24-year-olds say they aren't. Feeling comfortable about money doesn't derive from good practices. Only 55 per cent of 15-year-olds say they track their income, whereas 79 per cent of 18- to 24-year-olds do.

Most teenagers say they find the most helpful money advice from parents. Only 12 per cent say friends are most helpful. That's fewer than the 15 per cent who say they don't ask anyone for advice. Young people who grow up in homes where paying bills is a problem are less likely to be financially capable themselves. If your family doesn't save for emergencies, the chances are you won't either. Fourteen per cent of 18- to 24-year-olds have used their bank card to clean their nails, compared with three per cent of the over-65s. Most of these findings come from The Financial Capability of 15- to 17-year-olds, a useful report from the Money Advice Service. The last is from a survey by thinkmoney. Banks, eh?"

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