Zahawi debuts as education secretary

Nadhim Zahawi debuted as secretary of state for education today, taking questions from MPs in the House of Commons for the first time since being appointed to the role.

He responded to a range of issues including on arts funding, repeating the government’s pledge to invest “an additional £10 million in our world leading specialist providers, many of them specialists in art provision”.

On anti-vaxxers hounding teachers and students, the former vaccines minister said: “There is no place for anti-vaxxers harassing or coming anywhere near school leaders, and I have the reassurance of the home secretary that she’ll make any resource available”.