Aotearoa / New Zealand

However, our chances of having a more knowledgeable set of politicians would be vastly improved by having a population that is knowledgeable to draw them from - and an important part of that would be to de-couple education from social class and pair it with aptitude and merit.

This is precisely what I mean by meritocracy and the issue with equality/equity. We need to identify, reliably, the best way for each student to fulfill their potential. I don't care if you are the kid of Johnny White Trash, Mongrel Mob Mary or Nimby Niel; you deserve the opportunity to be your best. If every student fulfills their potential, the standard of leader we get will improve markedly.