Boris Johnson news live: Gavin Williamson accused of repeated incompetence after day of GCSE results chaos, as government risks major misstep with…

Gavin Williamson was accused of repeated incompetence after a day in which both he and the Department for Education apparently contradicted themselves on when GCSE students official results would be released. The exam board later clarified that students would have them by Thursday.

The education secretary also refused to say whether he had offered his resignation to Boris Johnson, after the government was forced into a painful U-turn on Monday in allowing students to use teachers suggested grades, rather than those awarded by a government algorithm based on schools performance history.

While reports suggested that Mr Williamsons offer to resign had been refused by the prime minister, his public comments appeared to lay blame at the feet of civil servants, telling LBC that Ofqual didnt deliver the system that we had been reassured and believed that would be in place.

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It came as headteachers union ASCL called for an urgent independent review of the exams grading fiasco, with general secretary Geoff Barton claiming it was necessary because public confidence has been badly shaken.

Meanwhile, the government faced further criticism for its decision to replace Public Health England (PHE) during a pandemic, with independent health think-tank, the Nuffield Trust, warning of a major misstep.

Health secretary Matt Hancock raised further eyebrows as he unveiled its replacement body, the National Institute for Health Protection, by insisting that one of the big learnings of the coronavirus crisis has been the need for private intervention in the health sector.

Citing the partnership between the government, pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca and Oxford University in creating a vaccine candidate, he claimed the idea of a divide between the public and private sectors was now for the birds, adding: So my message to everyone in the private sector is join us in the mission.

Read below to see how we reported on the day's events as they unfolded:

Baroness Harding set to head agency replacing Public Health England

Health secretary Matt Hancock is expected to announce the appointment of the Conservative peer Baroness Dido Harding as head of the governments new Institute for Health Protection.

Baroness Harding, the former chief executive of TalkTalk, has been in charge of Englands Test and Trace system since May.

Since then, questions have been raised about the programmes performance and value for money.

After becoming a peer in August 2014, Baroness Harding has been on the Economic Affairs Committee of the Lords since July 2017.

Read more on the story here:

Williamson refuses to say whether he's offered to resign

Education secretary Gavin Williamson has refused to say whether he has offered his resignation to the prime ministerover the A-levels fiasco.

This follows the government's decision on Monday to ditch the controversialalgorithm that was used to standardise A Level and GCSE results.

Asked three times on BBC Breakfast whether he had discussed stepping down from his position with Boris Johnson, Mr Williamson refused to directly address the question.

The education secretary said:Of course, I spoke with the prime minister, explained the situation - the fact that we needed to move to centre assessed grades because it was the fair system and the right system to do."

But my focus is making sure that every student gets the grades they deserve - making sure we deliver the return of all children back to school in September," he added.

The Independent's Ashley Cowburn has more on the story here:

Sajid Javid takes extra role as JP Morgan adviser

The former chancellor, who quit his cabinet position earlier this year, has been appointed as JP Morgans senior adviser on its advisory council for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Although the bank did not give details about Mr Javids salary, it said the position would be paid.

Prior to his career in politics, Mr Javid worked at the bank throughout the 1990s before working at Deutsche Bank.

His new role has been approved by the regulatory Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (ACOBA).

Shadow minister says education is governments blind spot

Shadow universities minister Emma Hardy has said that education secretary Gavin Williamsons delay in scrapping a controversial algorithm used to standardise exams results has caused a massive headache.

Her comments come as Labour sought clarity from the government over a range of outstanding issues posed by the U-turn.

Ms Hardy told BBC Breakfast:"His delay in making this decision has meant that more and more places at university have been filled up.

"Many students have gone ahead and accepted their second-place offers or other offers, or in fact got offers that maybe in the past they wouldn't have actually been entitled to, she added.

After accusing the government of lacking leadership and foresight, Ms Hardy said of education:"It's like it's their blind spot."

Tory MP says exam grade fiasco should be massive wake-up call for government

Robert Halfon, the Tory MP and chair of the House of Commons Education Select Committee, has said that the governments handling of exam results this year has been a mega-mess and that it should serve as a massive wake-up call.

Mr Halfon told ITV's GMB programme: "This should be a massive wake-up call for the Government.

"This has been a mega-mess and should not have happened and (Education Secretary Gavin Williamson's) got to, I think, learn from this and just make sure these kind of things do not happen in the future, he added.

The Tory MP said that government by computer does not work and that Boris Johnsons government should empathise with thousands of ordinary peoplewho are affected by its decisions.

Labour calls for clarity from Williamson over U-turn

Labour has called on education secretary Gavin Williamson to give clarity to students, parents and universities after the governments U-turn on exam results.

This follows Mr Williamsons announcement on Monday that GCSE and A-level students will receive their predicted grades and that the regulator Ofquals standardising algorithm will be scrapped.

Describing the governments handling of the situation as incompetent, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer wrote in the Daily Mirror: "At a time of national emergency, this is no way to run a country.

"The Tories' incompetence is holding Britain back from recovery, he added.

Shadow education secretary Kate Green has written to Mr Williamson with 15 questions, including when students will receive their new grades.

After saying she welcomed the policy change, Ms Green added: "The delay and chaos accompanying means that students, families, and education providers have no answers to essential questions.

One of the unresolved issues is whether students who have accepted a place at university based on their moderated gradescan change institutions once they receive their predicted grades.

While announcing the policy change on Monday, Mr Williamson apologised for "the distress" last week's results caused to students and their parents.

Kent CountyCouncil says it has reached its capacity to care for asylum-seeking children

The leader of Kent County Council has said that it can no longer safely accommodate more asylum-seeking children after reaching its capacity.

In a statement released by the council, Roger Gough said: "I am deeply disappointed and concerned that, despite our many efforts to avoid this unthinkable situation, it has been necessary to make this announcement today.

"This is a huge challenge for Kent, but a relatively small challenge to solve nationally, and should have been resolved before now, he added.

Mr Gough said the limit had been exceeded despite efforts to work with local authorities and the Home Office.

More than 400 unaccompanied migrant children have arrived in Kent this year, to whomKent County Council has aduty of care.

Scotlands most senior civil servant to be first witness in Salmond inquiry

MSPs will question permanent secretary Leslie Evans as part of an investigation into Holyroods handling of harassment allegations against the former first minister Alex Salmond.

This comes after the Court of Session in Edinburgh ruled that the Scottish governments actions over the complaints had been unlawful.

MsEvans, Scotlands most senior civil servant, will be the first witness to come before a committee established last year.

Mr Salmond, who was acquitted of 13 sexual offence charges earlier this year, will speak to the committee at a later date, as will the current first minister Nicola Sturgeon.

Williamson says he has every confidence schools will reopen in September

Education secretary Gavin Williamson has said that he has every confidence students will return to education in September.

Speaking to LBC, the education secretary said: "Anyone who works in education knows that ... the only right thing to do is open the doors to every single school in this country and welcome every single pupil back.

"We're looking forward to welcoming all those nine million children back into school in September and I do not have a moment's doubt, that's what we're going to achieve," he added.

Mr Williamsons remarks came as he faced calls to resign over his handling of exam results, which sparked a national outcry and led the government to scrap an algorithm that had been used to moderate students' grades.

The education secretary was criticised a few months ago after rowing back on a pledgeto have all primary school students back at school before the end of the summer term.

This followedthe closure of schools as part of lockdown restrictions.

Former conservative minister suggests Williamson may go in reshuffle

George Freeman, a former Tory minister, has suggested the education secretary may be forced out of his position in an upcoming reshuffle following the exam results fiasco.

Describing this years exam results as a total shambles, the Conservative MP told Times Radio that Boris Johnson will want to show that his government cares about a generation of young people.

"Ultimately, the Prime Minister is in charge. And I think he will want to take firm control of this and get a grip and show that his government is taking the life chances of a generation of children seriously," the Tory MP said.

"I'm told the Prime Minister's, you know, planning to reshuffle in the autumn and I dare say he wants to take everything into account, he added.

Some MPs have called for Mr Williamsons resignation, including the Labour shadow minister Louise Haigh and the Liberal Democrat leadership contender Layla Moran.

"The point is this government is utterly incompetent. Gavin Williamson must go," Ms Moran told BBC News.

Labour says government planto break up PHE during pandemic is'irresponsible'

Shadow health minister Jonathan Ashworth has strongly condemned the governments decision to replace Public Health England (PHE) during the pandemic, labelling it as risky and irresponsible.

Mr Ashworths comments, which were made in a series of scathing tweets, came as Matt Hancock is set to announce Conservative peerBaroness Dido Harding as the head of the agency replacing PHE.

In one of his Twitter posts, Mr Ashworth accused Boris Johnsons government of trying to shift the blame.

"A structural reorganisation mid-pandemic is time consuming, energy sapping. It's risky indeed irresponsible, he added.

The shadow health minister also asked who will be responsible for priorities including sexual health, obesity and anti smoking, now that PHE was being replaced.

Christina Marriott, chief executive of the Royal Society for Public Health, said: "We question the timing of an announcement to scrap our national public health agency in the midst of a global pandemic and before any public inquiry has started, let alone reported."

Exam results volte face is latest in series of government U-turns during pandemic

The governments decision to change its exam grades policy is just the latest in a string of reversals it has been forced to makeduring the pandemic, writes Kate Devlin.

On Monday, the government said that students would receive their predicted grades instead of the grades they were awarded last week, which had been moderated by an algorithm.

Boris Johnsons government has been forced to make other U-turns since the start of lockdown, including its policies on free school meals during the summer holidays and on abereavement scheme for the relatives of key workers who have died of Covid-19.

Read more here:

Hancock confirms Public Health England to be scrapped

Health secretary Matt Hancock has confirmed that the government will replace Public Health England, amid warnings that the move is irresponsible during a pandemic.

Speaking at the Policy Exchange think-tank, Mr Hancock said that Baroness Dido Harding, a Conservative peer who is in change of the test and trace system, will become the new institutes interim head.

The National Institution for Health Protection, which is set to start operating in spring 2021, wil protect the the country from external threats such as infectious diseases, according to the health secretary.

His comments came after Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow health secretary, condemned the decision in a serious of tweets on Tuesday morning.

In one of the messages, Mr Ashworth wrote: Today well get a structural reorganisation, an attempt at blame shifting, more corrosive privatisation.

Hancock explains new health organisation's mission

Matt Hancock has said that the government is replacing Public Health England with a new organisation called theNational Institution for Health Protection.

In a speech given at thePolicy Exchange think-tank, thehealth secretary claimed the decision would "give ourselves the best chance of beating this virus" and would enable the country to dealwith future external"health threats".

He said: "To give ourselves the best chance of beating this virus and spotting and tackling other external health threats now and in the future, we need to bring together the science and the skill into one coherent whole.

"So, today, I am announcing that we are forming a new organisation, the National Institute for Health Protection," he added.

Mr Hancock did not specify how much funding the public health sector would receive.

Kent County Council to stop taking in new unaccompanied migrant children

Asylum-seeking children who arrive in Dover without other family members will no longer be looked after by Kent County Council.

Instead, the children will remain with the UK Border Force at Dover until another UK local authority has space to safely care for them, according to the council.

This comes one dayafter Roger Gough, the council leader, said that the council had reached its capacity to provide care for migrant children.

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Boris Johnson news live: Gavin Williamson accused of repeated incompetence after day of GCSE results chaos, as government risks major misstep with...