Robert Halfon calls for abolition of Ofqual

Robert Halfon, the MP who chairs the Commons Education Select Committee, has said that ministers should seriously consider abolishing the exams regulator Ofqual so ministers to improve accountability.

Following the exam grades crisis, the MP for Harlow said that the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation was no longer fit for purpose, and that significant questions still remain over the way ministers handled the grades crisis, which led to a humiliating government U-turn.

The government announced it would allow A-level and GCSE pupils to use grades awarded by teachers, after the computer moderation process downgraded marks. Speaking to the Guardian, Halfon said there needed to be full transparency of the correspondence between the Department for Education and Ofqual to see when concerns were raised, as well as what questions were asked by the government and what actions were taken by Ofqual to ensure a level playing field for all students.

The Education Select Committee warned in July that: “Ofqual’s standardisation model aims to adjust grades to ensure they are broadly in line with previous years … there are concerns about risks of using historic data, which might not be fair for … schools which are on an upward trajectory.”

Gavin Williamson is facing significant criticism over his own role in the results chaos, with many, including the Liberal Democrats, calling on Prime Minister Boris Johnson to sack the Education Secretary, criticising his attempts to pass the blame on to Ofqual.