Will David Blunkett please make up his mind? Either the Secretary of State for education is in favour of grammar schools or he is not.

A spokesman for his department told the Times Group this week the Minister was neither pro nor anti-grammar. Rather, he explained, it was up to parents themselves to decide the fate of selective schools through balloting.

Funny then that Barnet's leading anti-grammar campaigner this week branded the process unworkable. Under Government guidelines, 20 per cent of eligible parents must sign a petition to force a ballot ,, all within nine months.

Earlier this year, Mr Blunkett rendered the Government's position on grammar schools laughable. His 1995 conference pledge to end selection was a joke, he explained.

Does that mean petitioning to force ballots should stop? And, if the process does continue, should it not be achievable on paper at least?

No word from Mr Blunkett. In the meantime some of Barnet's most successful schools face an uncertain future when they should be concentrating on teaching pupils. After stirring up a hornets' nest, Mr Blunkett would appear to be sitting on the fence watching us get stung.