Monday 17th September 2012

(12 years, 3 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Michael Gove Portrait Michael Gove
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My hon. Friend is to be congratulated on the clarity of his question and the cogency of his argument, as is The Daily Telegraph on the public benefit that accrued from its investigation.

John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Was the hon. Gentleman present at the start of the statement?

Paul Flynn Portrait Paul Flynn
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I was sitting elsewhere.

May I congratulate the Secretary of State on learning his Welsh lesson, even if he has proved himself a rather slow learner? My constituents can enjoy the benefits of the Welsh baccalaureate now, rather than wait until 2017. Will the Secretary of State learn another lesson from Wales by studying what happened with Leighton Andrews’s decision to award fair results to those who were cheated by the mismarking in the English exams?

Michael Gove Portrait Michael Gove
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There is a lot to admire in Wales, including the hon. Gentleman. I do not, however, admire the way that the regulator and the Education and Skills Minister are one and the same, and we must separate decisions taken by politicians from those taken by regulators. That is the approach taken in England, and I think it is better.