Embattled schools chief Gillian Keegan issues apology over sweary outburst demanding praise for concrete crisis
EMBATTLED schools chief Gillian Keegan issued a grovelling apology last night over a sweary outburst demanding praise for the crumbling concrete crisis.
The Education Secretary was caught on camera accusing others of “sitting on their a**e” as she did a “f***ing good job”.
The gaffe-prone Tory’s potty-mouthed tirade came after a testy interview with ITV while the cameras were still rolling.
She hit out: “Does anyone ever say: You know what, you’ve done a f***ing good job because everyone else has sat on their a**e and done nothing?′ No signs of that, no?”
She later apologised for her “choice language”, claiming she was frustrated with the interviewer rather than her predecessors or local government for dragging their feet.
PM Rishi Sunak also condemned Ms Keegan, saying her comments were wrong and forced her to apologise.
Downing St did not deny that Ms Keegan had been ordered to say sorry. Her deputy, Nick Gibb, insisted the tirade showed the “real Gillian”.
In a fiery Commons session Ms Keegan told MPs she had acted on Raac after three cases of collapse over summer, including two schools.
She said: “We are taking an extremely cautious approach to this issue — but I believe this is the right thing to do when it comes to the safety of children.” The PM was dragged into the saga following accusations he cut funding for school repairs as Chancellor.
The Department for Education’s former top civil servant Jonathan Slater claimed Mr Sunak had halved the cash for crumbling classrooms.
But the PM said this was “completely and utterly wrong” and defended his record.
Many teachers, parents and pupils had a torrid start of term yesterday grappling with pop-up classrooms, travel to alternative sites and a return to remote learning for some.
While 156 schools have been identified for dangerous levels of the lightweight concrete, education officials fear many more could be at risk.
Ms Keegan said hundreds of schools could be affected — The Sun understands it could be as many as 500 more.
She said schools who reported they had Raac would be visited by surveyors within weeks.
A full list of the schools confirmed to have Raac — the worst form of collapse-prone concrete — will finally be published this week.
Yet heads at affected schools have publicly complained the start of term has been sent into disarray by the Government’s last-minute orders to close risky buildings.
At Mayflower Primary School, Leicester, younger years stayed on site while older pupils were bussed two miles away to a make-do site. At Crossflats Primary in Bradford the kitchen and several classrooms were closed off for works.
It was also confirmed yesterday that Raac was present in two academy-run schools in Trafford — Sale Grammar and Altrincham College.
Downing Street said 524 schools have been refurbished since 2012 — a rate of about 50 a year — with 408 more in the pipeline.
The PM chaired a meeting of top ministers and officials on the RAAC crisis.
But Labour claimed ministers have ignored at least 180 warnings in the Commons on Raac since July 2022.
Labour also put the boot in after The Sun revealed Ms Keegan signed off on a £32million plush revamp of her department’s Westminster HQ.
She appeared to try to suggest she was not aware of authorising the refit — despite the contract showing the Education Secretary’s signature in April 2023.
Ms Keegan faced further flak after it was revealed she flew to Spain for a holiday on August 25, returning on August 31, just as the Raac crisis erupted.
Allies said she joined video calls while abroad.
And Town Hall chiefs hit back after Ms Keegan singled out local authorities as bearing responsibility for their school buildings.
Local Government Association chair Shaun Davies insisted he had been refused a meeting with the Education Secretary.
Top Tory is candid but guilty of gaffes
IN a world of ultra-polished politicians, Gillian Keegan has been hailed a breath of fresh air for her frank, unfiltered style.
But the ex-apprentice from Knowsley, Merseyside, has landed in hot water over the years.
In August, she sparked incredulity for telling pupils on results day not to worry because bosses “won’t ask you about your A-level grades in ten years’ time”.
A month earlier, she was mocked over her claims that private school fees cost the same as a family holiday abroad.
It led her Labour opposite number Bridget Phillipson to ask: “What planet are this lot on?”
Last year, Ms Keegan also asserted that nurses tended only to use foodbanks when “something has broken down — either a relationship or a boiler”.
It came after she sported a £10,000 Rolex watch in her official Cabinet portrait on becoming Education Secretary.
And in 2020, the-then junior education minister breezed off to the Alps for a holiday — while children here endured exam chaos.