Jo Johnson, the new universities and science minister, has outlined plans to tackle degree inflation, warning that the current system lets some students ¡°coast¡±.

Mr Johnson said in his speech at Universities UK on 1 July: ¡°The UK¡¯s standard model of classes of honours is on its own no longer capable of providing the recognition hard-working students deserve and the information employers require.¡±

He added: ¡°The teaching excellence framework we will introduce will include?incentives for the sector to tackle degree inflation and ensure that hard-won qualifications hold their value.¡±

Mr Johnson said that the government¡¯s autumn Green Paper would include among its goals a plan to ¡°improve¡± the degree classification.

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The comments may prove controversial among universities, which closely guard their autonomy on academic standards.

The sector has also undertaken its own work on improving degree classifications, including a pilot of a US-style grade point average system that has led to a recommendation for a five-year trial.

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Mr Johnson said that there has been a significant increase in the proportion of people receiving firsts and 2:1 degrees, acknowledging that to some extent, this was down to ¡°rising levels of attainment and hard work¡±.

But he added: ¡°I suspect I am not alone in worrying that less benign forces are at work with the potential to damage the UK higher education brand.¡±

He continued: ¡°In 2013-14, over 50 per cent of students were awarded an upper second, suggesting that this grade band not only disguises considerable variation in attainment, but also permits some to coast.¡±

john.morgan@tesglobal.com