TWO SEPARATE publications yesterday promised to transform the face of education in England and Wales.
But the day ended with Tory right wingers on the warpath, demanding the restoration of the cane and greater emphasis on marriage as the bulwark of the moral society.
And to compound government gloom, the day which saw Chancellor Kenneth Clarke raise interest rates for the first time in 18 months also saw the renewal of the Tory war over Europe - with Sir Edward Heath accusing the government of an "absolutely disgraceful" withholding of information in the single currency debate.
Selection and specialism were the favoured themes of the government's new Education Bill - promising to create more grammar schools and to allow others to select up to half their pupils by reason of ability.
The bill also sets out new powers enabling schools to deal with disruptive pupils, introducing home school contracts by which parents would pledge to support the education of their child by ensuring they get to school on time and encourage them to behave properly.
Meanwhile the National Forum on Values in Education sought to add "right and wrong" to the traditional "3Rs" on the school curriculum - with the launch of a new ethical framework for teaching in schools.
The report offered shared values in four areas - the self, relationships, society and the environment. And it said children should be taught that family life is the cornerstone of a caring society.
However the report drew an angry response from, some Tory MPs for failing to include any specific reference to the importance of marriage.
Mr Julian Brazier, MP, condemned the report, saying: "It's every bit as bad as we feared and Gillian Shepherd is absolutely right to express concern. It's a long string of empty platitudes with no firm commitment either to marriage or to Christianity. Trying to teach ethics outside a religious context is a waste of time. This is an attempt to produce politically correct platitudes which do nothing at all to promote the family or civic life."
The Prime Minister, Mr Major, and the Education Secretary, Mrs Shepherd, put on a display of unity yesterday after Tuesday's public falling out over the suggested return to corporal punishment.
Mr Major - who had to override Mrs Shepherd after she expressed her support for restoring the cane - suggested "the media should win the Booker Prize for fiction" for its coverage of the issue.
But ministerial hopes of putting the spat behind them were dashed when an MP, Mr James Pawsey, disclosed details of his proposed amendment to the Education Bill. Mr Pawsey said he expected "a lot" of support for the amendment which would enable schools to insist parents accept corporal punishment as part of a home school contract.
However the Chancellor entered the fray, insisting: It ain't going to happen."
. A MORI poll to the London Times says today support for Labour has risen by four points to 56 per cent while the Conservatives have slipped one point to 28 pet cent. The Liberal Democrats have dropped two points to 12 per cent.