England outperforms Scotland and Wales in international education rankings

Recent Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) data shows that 15-year-old students in England are outperforming their counterparts in Scotland and Wales across maths, reading, and science. English students scored significantly above the OECD average, placing England among the top 10 in these subjects.

In contrast, Wales has fallen below the OECD average, and Scotland's performance has stagnated, trailing England by approximately one year of learning. Former UK Education Secretary Michael Gove has criticized the Scottish National Party (SNP) for pursuing “ideological fads” rather than evidence-based reforms.

Lord Gove has offered to work with Scottish Education Secretary Màiri McAllan and Public Service Reform Secretary Ivan McKee to help adapt successful English educational models to meet Scottish needs, suggesting that the Scottish Government needs “a wee bit of humility” to recover its reputation for excellence.