Ministers must delay their controversial planned bonfire of BTECs and other technical qualifications until there is evidence T-levels are a 鈥渕ore effective鈥 replacement, a committee of MPs has warned. The parliamentary has called for a moratorium on the government鈥檚 plan to defund a raft of applied general qualifications (AGQs), warning a 鈥渃lear track record鈥 of T-level success should be a 鈥減rerequisite鈥 to their scrapping. The Department for Education is working to introduce a streamlined system for students finishing their GCSEs that pushes them to study either A-levels, their new technical equivalent T-levels, or an apprenticeship from 2025. Alternative AGQs, such as Pearson鈥檚 popular BTECs, will only continue to be funded if they do not overlap with T-levels or A-levels and pass a strict new approvals process. But today MPs warned 鈥渢ried and tested applied鈥 general qualifications should only be withdrawn when there was robust evidence proving T-levels were more effective in preparing students for 鈥減rogression, meeting industry needs and promoting social mobility鈥. The ability of businesses to offer 鈥渟ufficient, high-quality industry placements鈥, and a 鈥渃lear track record鈥 of T-level success, as well as evidenced improvement in equalities outcomes, 鈥渟hould be prerequisites to scrapping further applied general qualifications on the basis of overlap鈥. Ex-minister distances himself from reforms Robin Walker, a former schools minister who now chairs the committee, said: 鈥淲e have concerns about the feasibility of scaling up T-levels, and, as it stands, the planned withdrawal of AGQs will constrict student choice and could deepen the skills shortages that these reforms are meant to fix.鈥 Robin Walker In an interview with Schools Week, Walker also distanced himself from the reforms, which were developed during his time at the Department for Education. He was 鈥渧ery much focused at the time on writing a white paper for the schools system鈥. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 something I was intensively involved in in the way that might have otherwise been the case. As schools minister, I would have been briefed on the outcomes of those discussions rather than engaged in them.鈥 The DfE鈥檚 own equalities impact assessment found students with SEND, from Asian ethnic groups and from disadvantaged backgrounds were 鈥渓ikely to be particularly affected by the reforms鈥 鈥 as were male students. Much of the concern about the reforms centres around difficulties in getting the T-level programme off the ground. Fears T-levels the preserve of ‘academically gifted’ MPs found 鈥渦ncertainty鈥 around progression and whether the qualifications could be taken alongside A-levels, unequal regional access to industry placements and a lack of awareness. They also did not think there was yet 鈥渢he right balance of rigour and accessibility鈥. 鈥淓arly evidence indicates that schools and colleges are setting high entry requirements, and we heard that, as a result, T-levels could be restricted to a small pool of academically gifted students who have a specific employment goal in mind by age 16.鈥 Among the other recommendations was a call for an independent expert panel to look at the possibility of adopting a post-16 baccalaureate model in England. MPs also called for a 鈥渨holesale review鈥 of 16 to 19 funding, including more targeted support for disadvantaged students. The committee warned of the challenges that faced the government鈥檚 鈥渁mbition鈥 that all pupils study some form of maths to 18, including recruitment and retention of teachers. The DfE was approached for comment.