OLDHAM MPs have slammed a report by the Education Committee on white working-class pupils and accused the government of playing "divide and rule".

The government report warns that terms like white privilege are “divisive” and may have contributed towards a “systemic neglect” of white working-class pupils who underperform compared with disadvantaged peers in other ethnic groups.

The MPs behind the report made a series of recommendations to improve white working-class pupils’ outcomes, including finding “a better way to talk about racial disparities” to avoid pitting different groups against each other.

Committee chairman Robert Halfon said: “Never again should we lazily put the gap down to poverty alone, given that we know free school meal eligible pupils from other ethnic groups consistently outperform their white British peers.”

He added: “We also desperately need to move away from dealing with racial disparity by using divisive concepts like white privilege that pits one group against another. Disadvantaged white children feel anything but privileged when it comes to education.”

In response to the report, Angela Rayner MP for Ashton and Failsworth and Labour’s deputy leader, Tweeted on Tuesday: “A kid growing up on free school meals in Tottenham is neglected by the Tories just as much a kid growing up on free school meals in Ashton, Oldham, Failsworth or Droylsden. Don’t let them play divide and rule, that just means working class kids everywhere lose under the Tories.”

Jim McMahon, MP for Oldham West and Royton added: “This Conservative government and its predecessors over the last ten years have turned their back on pupils who need the most support, they’ve underfunded free childcare places and cut the pupil premium.

“Even today this Tory Government are letting some of our most vulnerable kids down by failing to properly fund a catch-up programme. Our children and their future ambitions and life chances depend on us getting this right. The Conservatives’ failure to deliver for children now could cost our country dearly long-term.”

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “This Government is focused on levelling up opportunity so that no young person is left behind.

“That’s why we are providing the biggest uplift to school funding in a decade – £14 billion over three years – investing in early years education and targeting our ambitious recovery funding, worth £3 billion to date, to support disadvantaged pupils aged two to 19 with their attainment.”