The Conservatives will introduce anti-dumbing down legislation to stop exams becoming easier if they win power, the shadow schools secretary is to announce today. Michael Gove will say a Tory government would legislate for "the fixing of our exam standards to an international benchmark", to prevent a slide in tests such as GCSEs.

Mr Gove's comments come after years of complaint from traditionalists that easier exams are reducing standards. The row came to a head last month when AQA, Britain's biggest exam board, agreed under protest and under pressure from the qualifications regulator, Ofqual, to lower the grade C pass mark for its GCSE science paper in order to bring it into line with other awarding bodies.