In the latest meetings of parent representatives with the school authorities there has been an implied admission that the school, as currently organised, is facing issues of viability. The rate of registration of new children to Lux II is so low that the school now wants to radically change the rules of registration, ‘forcing parents with kids in the DE, FR and EN sections to send their kids to Lux II, except in certain circumstances.’

But remember, black is white. There is no disadvantage to having your children at Lux II, and certainly nothing that can’t be fix with a good mobility plan. Don’t ask why Lux II has to force ever wider categories of children to use the school, or why the school needs an increased percentage of non-EU institution staff children, or why the Luxembourg government is so concerned about whether it can deal with the influx of educational refugees from the European School.

And there is no favoritism for workers from the Baltic Rim countries and discrimination against those between the borders of Poland and Bulgaria. To point out this difference of treatment is just not nice. It is what Orwell called crimethink – and there is a palpable fear that you could lose your precarious contract (or teaching) job, or risk individual discrimination of your child, if you dare question the wisdom or fairness of authoritarian decisions made at an inter-institutional level. We dared to raise the self-evident issue of discrimination with the Complaints Board, for which they are now fining us EUR 1000 (see attached letter from Mr Kivinen).