EDUCATION Secretary Nicky Morgan has been branded a “disgrace” after refusing to attend two teachers’ union conferences.

With 41 days until the general election, Ms Morgan leapt at the chance to appear last night on BBC Question Time.

But a letter seen by the Star reveals that the Tory has twice dodged the opportunity to debate with Britain’s teachers.

Ms Morgan first backtracked on a promise to speak at a NASUWT event for LGBT members last month.

Then she turned down an invitation to defend the government’s divisive education policies at the union’s national conference in Cardiff next week.

Her refusal was revealed in a letter sent by NASUWT general secretary Chris Keates, which has now been made public.

Ms Keates wrote: “It is quite frankly disgraceful that throughout the lifetime of this Parliament, the Secretary of State for Education has not once had the courtesy or the courage to face an audience of serving teachers, unless it appears the venue and the audience have been handpicked by them and their advisers.”

She also accused Ms Morgan of dodging the earlier LGBT conference for “purely political reasons.”

The letter pointed out that the Tory announced her withdrawal on the same day that she issued an unpopular response to a review on teacher workload.

Defending Ms Morgan, a Department for Education spokesman said that she had accepted an invitation to speak at the Association of School and College Leaders conference.

Labour shadow education secretary Tristram Hunt will speak at the ATL, NUT and NASUWT conferences next week.
The NUT did not invite Ms Morgan to its conference.