Tristram Hunt MP, Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary, responding to Nick Clegg’s speech to public sector workers, said:

“You can’t trust a word Nick Clegg says – he is part of the Government that has denigrated the professionalism of teachers - allowing unqualified teachers into classrooms, dismissing the profession as ‘enemies of promise’ and letting teacher workload spiral. His attempts to distance himself from his own Government’s dismal record on teacher workload will be met with great scepticism and the teaching profession will be right to hold him to account for the decisions that he has taken.

“Nick Clegg will be judged on his actions, not his words. Unlike the Lib Dems, Labour has a real plan for raising the status of the teaching profession and reducing unnecessary burdens on teachers, putting teaching standards first with high-quality professional development and ensuring that teachers are able to pursue new career pathways that keep the best teachers in the classrooms.”

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