Cameron gives the impression his decisions reflect the imprint of the last Liberal Democrat who sat on him, says Brian Binley MP

By Tim Montgomerie
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Conservative MP Brian Binley has reacted furiously to reports that David Cameron is NOT going to block Les Ebdon's appointment as Director of Fair Access. Mr Binley is a member of the Business, Innovation and Skills Select Committee that recommended AGAINST Mr Ebdon's appointment. There are two key quotes from a press release that has just been issued by Mr Binley..

(1) THE CASE AGAINST LES EBDON

“Professor Ebdon is likely to do serious and lasting damage to some of our best universities. He’s a defender of ridiculous Mickey Mouse degrees and has threatened ‘nuclear penalties’ for universities which don’t meet their admissions targets. In short, he’s prepared to sacrifice academic excellence for the sake of pointless targets and political correctness."

(2) THE CASE AGAINST DAVID CAMERON

"I was incensed that the Government treated Parliament with such utter disdain in failing even to give adequate consideration to the Select Committee’s concerns. But that is nothing to the contempt I feel for this disgraceful assault on what people in the country should be able to expect from Ministers – as policy-makers, not backroom dealers playing fast-and-loose with people’s lives. That Ministers seem prepared to trade one-off exchanges at the potential expense of our national prosperity and future well-being is a disgrace. Their apparent glee at having mollified each other’s ambitions leaves me cold. The time is fast approaching when the Prime Minister needs to get a grip and cease leaving the impression that his agenda is determined by the imprint of the last Liberal Democrat who sat on him. This rotten episode smacks of all the worst elements of a shady, back-street second-hand car dealership, and is an utterly shameful way to make policy”."

On ConservativeHome yesterday Jill Kirby urged David Cameron to take universities out of Vince Cable's department and put them back where they belong - inside the Department for Education and in Michael Gove's safe hands.