Education Questions: Toby Perkins accuses government of ‘standing as a barrier to aspiration’

During education questions, shadow minister Toby Perkins suggested that the government is a “get back in your place government that stands as a barrier to aspiration to deprived students”. Perkins referred to many areas that he felt that the government had fallen short, including the national tutoring programme and “disparaging” of higher education courses with higher numbers of deprived children on them”. 

Minister for higher education Michelle Donelan denied these claims, telling the House that “aspiration is at the heart of everything” that the government does. 

Donelan told the House that a question like that from the opposition was “desperate”. However, the Speaker of the House told her that he will “decide whether it’s in order or not”.