Former UK education ministers attack plan to reduce vocational qualifications

Coalition fears DfE may break pledges that only small percentage of qualifications will be replaced by T-levels

A coalition of former education ministers has attacked the UK government’s “disastrous” plan to scrap dozens of popular vocational qualifications and push students into taking its favoured new T-levels.

David Blunkett, the former Labour education secretary, said he feared that widespread scrapping of qualifications such as BTecs from 2025 could backfire and pead to more 17 and 18-year-olds opting to take A-levels rather than the vital vocational qualifications the country needs.