By Alex Smith / @alexsmith1982
You may recall that after the last Queen’s Speech in November last year, Ed Balls challenged the then shadow schools minister Michael Gove to a GCSE Pop Quiz to debunk the myth that the Labour government had made exams easier:
Well, last week, Ed Balls repeated his trick – though this time in the style of University Challenge. Balls said:
“Here’s your starter for ten – no conferring on the frontbench. Who said this weekened “the free schools are generally attended by children of better-educated and wealthy families, making things even more difficult for children attending ordinary schools in poor areas. Gove, Lady Margaret Hall…?”
Find out who said that – and see some particularly uncomfortable questions for Sarah Teather – in the video below:
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Letters to the Editor – week ending 3 May 2026