Nearly eight out of 10 adults would fail to get a good pass in GCSE maths, the public spending watchdog has found. The National Audit Office found that most adults aged 20 to 65 lacked the basic skills expected of 16-year-olds in reading, writing and maths. The findings were criticised by Alan Wells, director of the Basic Skills Agency. “If four out of five adults have inadequate literacy and numeracy skills, thousands of teachers must have failed their pupils,” he said. “Why has no government spotted this? Because it’s not the case.”

Skills for Life is at www.nao.org.uk