Big committee hearing this morning. Ofqual are getting grilled by @CommonsEd over the exams fiasco. Chair Roger Taylor will be there, but former chief regulator Sally Collier is not.

We're now underway @CommonsEd

Ofqual's Roger Taylor: "We fully share our responsibility for what has gone wrong this year". He said it was an "extremely anxiety masking incident".

Taylor: "The fundamental mistake was to believe that this would ever be acceptable to the public."

Taylor is asked about relationship between DfE and Ofqual. "The Secretary of State as the democratically accoundtable politician decides policy".

Taylor says that Ofqual in spring gave DfE 3 options for exams - socially distanced exams, delayed exams, or calculated exams. He said Williamson went with third option "without further consultation with Ofqual".

Taylor now saying that Williamson effectively ordered Ofqual to go down mock appeals route. Ofqual set out mock appeal criteria. Then Williamson phoned to say the criteria was wrong.

Taylor making clear that it was Ofqual's idea to move to centre-assessed grades, which Williamson resisted.

Remember immediately after the U-turn, Williamson claimed it was his call.

Taylor: "We initially advised against cancelling exams".

This is pretty damaging stuff for the Government.

Jonathan Gullis, cradling his baby at home, asks Taylor about Ofqual's response to Scottish U-turn.

Taylor says that Williamson decided to "introduce this new form of appeal" based on mocks. Ofqual advised this was "an extremely risky thing to do".

Taylor asked whether Ofqual will publish correspondence and minutes with DfE.

Taylor: "Yes, I think we could do that, obviously we will need to discuss that with the department... we certainly don't have anything to hide".

Ofqual's Julie Swan now listing in detail warnings made to DfE. Ofqual had weekly meetings with schools minister Nick Gibb. Said there was risk of "widespread disatisfaction" with grades. Also briefed Number 10.

Ofqual now being asked about the guidance it gave to schools on centre-assessed grades. As we've reported, some schools effectively "pre-standardised" their grades, which means pupils now lumbered with lower grades than in other schools https://inews.co.uk/news/education/a-levels-gcses-2020-teenagers-unfairly-downgraded-schools-algorithm-599971

Taylor says he had a "number of conversations" with Williamson on the Sunday before the U-turn on Monday. "By the end of the day, [Williamson] had come to accept that the situation was one where any other policy would be indefensible".

Taylor: "I don't think it would be appropriate for Ofqual to ignore the Secretary of State's guidance". (I.e. making it clear that decision to standardise grades statistically came from ministerial direction).

Labour MP Ian Mearns suggests DfE infringed on Ofqual's independence throughout the process. Taylor: "We were in completely unchartered territory... I do not think it would have been appropriate for Ofqual to have determined the fundamental policy".

Taylor says Ofqual presented calculated grades as "worse case scenario" to DfE. Ofqual also suggested pupils could get their results in form of a "teacher certificate", rather than an "attempt to replicate grades". Says Ofqual flagged risks of calculate grades in "vivid detail".