There was a re-run of an old debate last weekend. Does the Prime Minister use private health?

This was prompted by a question from the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg on her Sunday morning political show. The PM refused to answer. He is, after all, allowed some privacy.

But this raises a wider question about aspiration. Why is it wrong that people should have private health? Or private education for their children? After all, as more than a few commentators have pointed out, is it morally right that someone who can afford to go private should burden themselves on the state, possibly pushing someone who needs state services further down the queue?

This whole issue comes up from time to time. The opposition parties are now suggesting that private schools should lose their charitable status, and so be required to charge VAT on fees. It is widely accepted that this will put private education out of the reach of most people, leaving the big schools to sell their services to overseas millionaires, whilst smaller ones go bust, increasing the burden on the state sector and costing jobs. Some even suggest that the increased revenue in VAT will be eclipsed by the extra cost on the state sector.

Irrespective of the economic arguments, I worry that some in our political arena seem to think it is wrong for people to aspire to better things for their family. If it is wrong for people to aspire to private medicine and education, at what point does it become wrong to aspire for your own home? Your own car? A foreign holiday? This is a very tricky route to go down and I want people to be proud of their aspirations and how they can improve the fortunes for themselves and their families.

That said, it is still vital that the public sector can provide services that people feel are excellent. I’ve been rather concerned lately that people seeking medical procedures have been passed to the private sector by consultants who are apparently too busy, with long waiting lists, to perform a procedure. Uncomfortably frequently, it is the same consultants who can’t get patients onto their NHS lists, but can perform miracles on their private lists. I need to investigate this more, but it feels uncomfortably close and conflicted.

Ultimately, we need to deliver public services that are the equal of the private sector. That is, after all, what we pay our taxes for.