'See me after class!': UK education secretary Lucy Powell mocked by Tories over grammar gaffe

Britain's newly appointed Education Secretary Lucy Powell has found herself at the centre of an unexpected political storm after a grammatical mistake in a social media post prompted sharp criticism from the Conservative Party, with Tory MPs quipping that she should "see me after class."

The row began a day after Lucy Powell took charge as the UK's Education Secretary, when she shared a social media post outlining Labour's priorities for schools and skills. The post contained several grammatical errors.

Accompanying screenshots of the post, the Conservatives wrote on X: "Labour's new Education Secretary is off to a flying start," before mocking her with the remark, "3/10. See me after class!"

Conservative MPs seized on the error, arguing that the minister responsible for England's education system should be held to a higher standard of written communication. The remark, "3/10, see me after class!", widely shared by Tory politicians and supporters, turned the typo into a viral political talking point.

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Labour, however, dismissed the criticism and responded with a counter-jibe of its own. Reacting to the Conservatives' post, the party accused the Tories of making spelling mistakes themselves, saying: "They spelled 'Labour's' and 'Britain' incorrectly. The Tories might want to learn how to spell our country correctly before they start embarrassing themselves."

Political optics overshadow policy agenda

While the mistake was minor and later corrected, it has underscored how social media posts by senior ministers are increasingly scrutinised for both substance and presentation.

The episode comes at a sensitive time for Powell, who has inherited responsibility for implementing Labour's education agenda, including reforms aimed at improving classroom standards, vocational skills and opportunities for young people. Rather than focusing on those priorities, the early days of her tenure have been dominated by discussion of a grammatical slip.

Political observers note that such incidents often become symbolic in the highly charged environment of British politics, where opponents use even small errors to question competence or credibility. For the Conservatives, the episode provided an opportunity to challenge Labour's messaging, while Labour supporters dismissed the criticism as political point-scoring over an obvious typo.

Although the row is unlikely to have any lasting impact on education policy, it illustrates how quickly social media mistakes can overshadow substantive debates. For Powell, the challenge now will be shifting attention back to the government's education reforms rather than the grammar of a single online post.