"Clearly, no single performance measure is flawless; it is impossible to distil into one statistic a representation of the quality or otherwise of an education system. But the fact that fewer than one pupil in six achieved the threshold for the new English Baccalaureate is very worrying and underlines the continuing need for radical reform in education.

“Schools, colleges and universities represent the frontline of the fight for the UK’s future economic competitiveness. To develop the highly skilled workforce businesses increasingly depend on, we must prepare pupils to compete in the global marketplace. That means a resolute and unabashed focus on improving performance across the board.

He added: