Gillian Keegan: Education secretary defends going on holiday despite concrete panel failings emerging last month
Education Secretary Gillian Keegan has defended being on holiday during the summer while further evidence of the use of unsafe concrete in buildings came to light.
Ms Keegan was on holiday in Spain from 25 August to 31 August when she admitted that three new cases of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) emerged – one in a commercial building, one in an education “setting” and one in a school in England.
She has been at the forefront of the RAAC crisis that is unfolding in schools in England, where more than 104 schools have been ordered to close or partially close because of the concrete – which is prone to collapse after a period of time.
The issue has caused disruption for thousands of pupils just as they go back to school following the summer holidays.
Earlier today Ms Keegan apologised for her “choice language” after she was caught complaining about not being thanked for doing a “f****** good job” over the crisis.
Nandy’s ‘brutal’ demotion conversation revealed – politics latest
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In full: Education sec reacts to swearing clip
The interview with ITV News was played back to Ms Keegan when she appeared as a guest on Sky News’ new Politics Hub show with Sophy Ridge.
Challenged by Ridge about whether it was a “mistake” to go on holiday, Ms Keegan replied: “To be honest, for the whole of the summer, obviously I had to sort out industrial action, then I had to do A-levels and I had to do the GCSEs – so the first time I could go on holiday…”
Ridge interjected: “So we should feel sorry for you?”
Ms Keegan replied: “Not at all. I don’t expect anybody to feel sorry for me. I’m certainly not getting that vibe from you.”
The education secretary said her trip to Spain was a “family occasion”, but that she “worked remotely” while away, adding that the surveys and investigations were still ongoing and she was planning to return “straight away” for when they came back, which she did.
In the interview with ITV News in Westminster – which caught her on camera swearing – the cabinet minister criticised others for being “sat on their arses” and claimed the government had gone “over and above” in addressing concerns relating RAAC.
While her mic was still on, she said: “Does anyone ever say ‘You know you’ve done a f****** good job because everyone else has sat on their arses and done nothing’.
“No signs of that, no?”
Ms Keegan later apologised and admitted she was “frustrated with the interviewer” who was “making out it was all my fault”.
Her outburst came after she had come under pressure over the unfolding crisis, with critics accusing the Tories of a “shambolic” handling of the situation after claiming that risks associated with the dangerous material have been known about for years.
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Top five hot mic moments
RAAC is essentially a lighter-weight form of concrete, used to build roofs, schools, colleges and other buildings from the 1950s until the mid-1990s.
The government said “new information” about RAAC came to light over the summer, prompting them to issue the safety warning just days before the start of the school term.
But experts have long warned the material has now reached the end of its shelf life and is liable to collapse.
As a result of RAAC being identified, pupils face being taught in temporary classrooms, on different sites, or even forced into pandemic-style remote lessons.
In a statement in the House of Commons on Monday afternoon, Ms Keegan promised to publish the full list of affected schools “this week” as she sought to stress that disruption would be minimal.
Asked whether she would like to apologise for how the crisis has been handled, Ms Keegan said she was “really sorry” that pupils were missing school”, but added: “Prioritising safety is the most important point – and I wouldn’t apologise for that.”
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Labour pushed on school spending
Labour’s shadow health secretary Wes Streeting, speaking before Ms Keegan’s interview with Ridge, said he believed she had “misunderstood why people are angry”.
“To start the term with this chaotic backdrop – and then to see the education secretary saying why [aren’t] people thank me I think is an insult,” he said.
Former education secretary Baroness Nicky Morgan also told the Politics Hub that the fiasco was every secretary of state’s “worst nightmare”.
But she said her successor had done the “only thing” she could possibly could have done in the situation, adding that England has an “ageing school estate”.
Read more:
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Gillian Keegan is shown a video of a headteacher reacting to her swearing.
There are questions about who bears responsibility for the RAAC fiasco that is now affecting schools.
Challenged by Ridge on the fact that Labour did not address this problem when it was in government before 2010, Mr Streeting pointed to the budget to rebuild schools being cut and the Conservatives having had 13 years in government to fix this issue.
However, he refused to say how much Labour would spend fixing the issue, saying: “We don’t know how much this is going to cost yet.”
“I can’t point to the figure … because we don’t know [how bad the problem is].”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said it is “completely and utterly wrong” to suggest he is to blame for failing to fully fund a programme to rebuild England’s crumbling schools as he dismissed claims about his record as chancellor.
“Of course I know the timing is frustrating, but I want to give people a sense of the scale of what we are grappling with here: there are around 22,000 schools in England and the important thing to know is that we expect that 95% of those schools won’t be impacted by this,” he said.
UK
Resident doctor strikes: I don’t want people to suffer but we have to walk out again, says BMA chief
The British Medical Association (BMA) has defended a new round of resident doctor walkouts starting on Friday, insisting medics’ pay is still “way down” compared with 2008 and that the government has failed to finish “a journey” towards restoring it.
BMA chair Dr Tom Dolphin told Sky News the dispute remains rooted in years of pay erosion that have left resident doctors far behind other public sector workers.
“When we started the dispute, […] the lowest level of the resident doctors were being paid £14 an hour,” he said.
“There were some pay rises over the last couple of years that brought that partly back to the value it should be at, but not all the way.
“The secretary of state (Wes Streeting) himself called it a journey, implying there were further steps to come, but we haven’t seen that.”
Resident doctors outside Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary during a five-day strike in July. File pic: PA
When asked if the row ultimately “comes down to money”, he replied: “In the sense that the secretary of state doesn’t want to or isn’t able to fund the pay increases to match the value that we had in 2008.”
Dr Dolphin argued that while “the general worker in the economy as a whole” has seen pay catch up since the 2008 financial crash, “doctors are still way down”.
The government points out that its 29% settlement last year was one of the largest in the public sector and was intended to draw a line under two years of walkouts.
But Dr Dolphin said the deal still fell short: “The gap was biggest for doctors and needed the biggest amount of restoration, and that’s what we got.”
He defended the BMA’s use of the Retail Price Index (RPI), a metric rejected by the Office for National Statistics, saying it “better reflects the costs people face”.
Should resident doctors get a pay rise? Have your say in the poll at the bottom of this story.
Dr Tom Dolphin says resident doctors are still underpaid
‘Who do you think is treating the patients?’
With Chancellor Rachel Reeves preparing her budget amid warnings of deep cuts, Dr Dolphin said the BMA is not demanding an immediate cash injection.
“We’re quite happy for that money to be deferred with some kind of multi-year pay deal so that we can end the dispute and avoid having further industrial action about pay for several years to come,” he said.
“Money spent in the NHS is returned to the economy. For every pound you spend, you get several pounds back.”
When pressed on whether the £1.7bn cost of previous strike action could have been better spent on treatment and technology for NHS cancer patients, he hit back: “Who do you think is treating the cancer patients? It’s the doctors.”
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Health Secretary Wes Streeting has criticised the BMA for striking again. File pic: PA
Strikes will cause disruption, union boss admits
Dr Dolphin rejected suggestions that the dispute could destabilise the government, calling the idea “implausible”.
He admitted prolonged strikes have tested public patience, but said the government had left doctors with no choice.
“A prolonged industrial dispute makes people annoyed with both sides,” he said. “It is vexing to us that we are still in this dispute.”
“I don’t want patients to suffer,” he added. “I accept that the strikes cause disruption… of course that’s upsetting for them. I completely get that. And I’m sorry that it’s happening.”
Sir Keir Starmer has apologised to his health secretary after allies of the prime minister accused him of plotting a coup.
Sky News understands Sir Keir spoke briefly to Wes Streeting on Wednesday evening, though did not share details about the briefing campaign.
Politics Hub: Follow latest updates
Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions earlier in the day, he denied authorising the attacks on Mr Streeting, who was accused of planning a leadership challenge after the budget later this month.
Mr Streeting said the allegations are “not true”, telling Sky News’ Mornings With Ridge And Frost that whoever was behind the briefings had been “watching too much Celebrity Traitors”.
He insisted he was loyal to the prime minister, who has been under mounting pressure as he and the Labour Party flounder behind Reform in the polls.
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Health secretary insists he’s ‘a faithful’
Downing Street went on the attack on Tuesday night to ward off any potential challenge to Sir Keir after the budget, which could see the government announce manifesto-breaking tax rises.
Sir Keir and Rachel Reeves have refused to rule out raising income tax, national insurance, or VAT.
One senior figure told Sky News political editor Beth Rigby while a post-budget challenge is unlikely, it could come if next May’s elections – including in London and Wales – go badly for Labour.
Labour face a challenge from Reform on the right and parties like the Greens and Plaid Cymru on the left.
Read more: How No 10 plunged itself into crisis
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Starmer backs Streeting at PMQs
Also under pressure is the prime minister’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, after Mr Streeting hit out at a “toxic culture” inside Number 10.
Sir Keir failed to say he had “full confidence” in him at PMQs in response to questions from Kemi Badenoch, but the prime minister’s political spokesperson later insisted to journalists that he does retain his backing.
Sky News understands Mr McSweeney was not discussed when Sir Keir and Mr Streeting spoke last night.
Labour chairwoman Anna Turley said the prime minister will investigate the source of the claims against the health secretary, telling ITV: “This is not what he wants to see and he’s determined to drive it out.”
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