London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Feb 01, 2026

Term ‘white privilege’ disadvantages white working-class kids, MPs’ report finds, reigniting Britain’s race row

Term ‘white privilege’ disadvantages white working-class kids, MPs’ report finds, reigniting Britain’s race row

A new report which claims the term “white privilege” can be “divisive” and disadvantgaes the white working class has sparked fresh debate on “racist Britain", with some accusing the government of deflecting from its own errors.

The report by MPs on the Education Select Committee, released on Monday, has caused a stir, after it suggested that white working-class children have been left behind, partially due to potentially “divisive” terms such as “white privilege.”

The Education Select Committee, which consists of serving MPs, accused the Department for Education (DfE) of failing to realise the extent of the challenge which had left working-class kids behind for generations.

Conservative MP and committee chairman Robert Halfon said Britain “desperately” needs to “move away from dealing with racial disparity by using divisive concepts like white privilege that pits one group against another," adding: “Disadvantaged white children feel anything but privileged when it comes to education.”

The report has been widely condemned by Twitter’s serial complainers, with many accusing the committee of siding with Boris Johnson’s non-woke Tory government. The report’s findings broadly reflect views already expressed by the controversial Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities which was set up following Black Lives Matter activities in 2020. The commission had been accused of whitewashing a report into discrimination in the UK.

Commenting on the new report, British author Eve Ainsworth said she had always been aware of her “white privilege” despite her working-class background and denounced Johnson’s “elitist” government for not being able to separate the two.


Activist and outspoken leftist Femi Oluwole was also quick to defend the use of the term “white privilege” and seemed to question whether the white working class really were disadvantaged by their situation.

“Like most black kids, my parents told me I needed to work twice as hard as the white kids at school in order to succeed. Turned out to be a statistical fact,” he wrote, adding ironically that the Tories seem to believe educational inequality stems from racism against white kids.


Others dismissed the committee’s findings entirely and blasted Conservative austerity instead.

“The “systemic neglect” of white working-class pupils is due to teaching concepts like “#WhitePrivilege,” rather than, say, 10-years of ideologically-driven austerity?” the Northern Independence Party, a left-wing party demanding independence for Northumbria and beyond, wrote on Twitter.

Meanwhile, some were keen to share more sympathetic perspectives and the report generated plenty of support from Brits who want to push back against the BLM movement, notably the groups that demand British pupils learn about “white privilege.”

Journalist and former MEP Martin Daubney welcomed the report, noting that white kids have been left behind due to the “toxic myth” that is “white privilege.”

Another person questioned the psychological impact of teaching a young child the concept of being privileged because of their skin colour, claiming the term is the “most racist” imaginable.

Others made jibes that those who support the term “white privilege.” One wrote: “Back in the 80’s when my cleaning job, outside a building on The Strand, meant I used to have to roll human shit onto a shovel every day, I always took a moment to check my #WhitePrivilege.”

Amid the ongoing row on racism in Britain in the aftermath of the BLM movement, the report highlights that the UK’s white working-class kids are perennially under-performers compared to all non-white counterparts.

With regards to A-level and college exams, only 16% of white British pupils, who are given free school meals due to their financial position, get university places. By comparison, 59% of black African pupils on free meals and 59% of Bangladeshi pupils on free meals, get their university places.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
New Epstein Files Include Images of Former Prince Andrew Kneeling Over Unidentified Woman
Starmer Urges Former Prince Andrew to Testify Before US Congress About Epstein Ties
Starmer Extends Invitation to Japan’s Prime Minister After Strategic Tokyo Talks
Skupski and Harrison Clinch Australian Open Men’s Doubles Title in Melbourne
DOJ Unveils Millions of Epstein Files, Fueling Global Scrutiny of Elite Networks
France Begins Phasing Out Zoom and Microsoft Teams to Advance Digital Sovereignty
China Lifts Sanctions on British MPs and Peers After Starmer Xi Talks in Beijing
Trump Nominates Kevin Warsh as Fed Chair to Reorient U.S. Monetary Policy Toward Pro-Growth Interest Rates
AstraZeneca Announces £11bn China Investment After Scaling Back UK Expansion Plans
Starmer and Xi Forge Warming UK-China Ties in Beijing Amid Strategic Reset
Tech Market Shifts and AI Investment Surge Drive Global Innovation and Layoffs
Markets Jolt as AI Spending, US Policy Shifts, and Global Security Moves Drive New Volatility
U.S. Signals Potential Decertification of Canadian Aircraft as Bilateral Tensions Escalate
Former South Korean First Lady Kim Keon Hee Sentenced to 20 Months for Bribery
Tesla Ends Model S and X Production and Sends $2 Billion to xAI as 2025 Revenue Declines
China Executes 11 Members of the Ming Clan in Cross-Border Scam Case Linked to Myanmar’s Lawkai
Trump Administration Officials Held Talks With Group Advocating Alberta’s Independence
Starmer Signals UK Push for a More ‘Sophisticated’ Relationship With China in Talks With Xi
Shopping Chatbots Move From Advice to Checkout as Walmart Pushes Faster Than Amazon
Starmer Seeks Economic Gains From China Visit While Navigating US Diplomatic Sensitivities
Starmer Says China Visit Will Deliver Economic Benefits as He Prepares to Meet Xi Jinping
UK Prime Minister Starmer Arrives in China to Bolster Trade and Warn Firms of Strategic Opportunities
The AI Hiring Doom Loop — Algorithmic Recruiting Filters Out Top Talent and Rewards Average or Fake Candidates
Amazon to Cut 16,000 Corporate Jobs After Earlier 14,000 Reduction, Citing Streamlining and AI Investment
Federal Reserve Holds Interest Rate at 3.75% as Powell Faces DOJ Criminal Investigation During 2026 Decision
Putin’s Four-Year Ukraine Invasion Cost: Russia’s Mass Casualty Attrition and the Donbas Security-Guarantee Tradeoff
Wall Street Bets on Strong US Growth and Currency Moves as Dollar Slips After Trump Comments
UK Prime Minister Traveled to China Using Temporary Phones and Laptops to Limit Espionage Risks
Google’s $68 Million Voice Assistant Settlement Exposes Incentives That Reward Over-Collection
Kim Kardashian Admits Faking Paparazzi Visit to Britney Spears for Fame in Early 2000s
UPS to Cut 30,000 More Jobs by 2026 Amid Shift to High-Margin Deliveries
France Plans to Replace Teams and Zoom Across Government With Homegrown Visio by 2027
Trump Removes Minneapolis Deportation Operation Commander After Fatal Shooting of Protester
Iran’s Elite Wealth Abroad and Sanctions Leakage: How Offshore Luxury Sustains Regime Resilience
U.S. Central Command Announces Regional Air Exercise as Iran Unveils Drone Carrier Footage
Four Arrested in Andhra Pradesh Over Alleged HIV-Contaminated Injection Attack on Doctor
Hot Drinks, Hidden Particles: How Disposable Cups Quietly Increase Microplastic Exposure
UK Banks Pledge £11 Billion Lending Package to Help Firms Expand Overseas
Suella Braverman Defects to Reform UK, Accusing Conservatives of Betrayal on Core Policies
Melania Trump Documentary Sees Limited Box Office Traction in UK Cinemas
Meta and EssilorLuxottica Ray-Ban Smart Glasses and the Non-Consensual Public Recording Economy
WhatsApp Develops New Meta AI Features to Enhance User Control
Germany Considers Gold Reserves Amidst Rising Tensions with the U.S.
Michael Schumacher Shows Significant Improvement in Health Status
Greenland’s NATO Stress Test: Coercion, Credibility, and the New Arctic Bargaining Game
Diego Garcia and the Chagos Dispute: When Decolonization Collides With Alliance Power
Trump Claims “Total” U.S. Access to Greenland as NATO Weighs Arctic Basing Rights and Deterrence
Air France and KLM Suspend Multiple Middle East Routes as Regional Tensions Disrupt Aviation
U.S. winter storm triggers 13,000-plus flight cancellations and 160,000 power outages
Poland delays euro adoption as Domański cites $1tn economy and zloty advantage
×