Tony Blair's flagship academy schools are among the worst in the country, according to the latest performance tables.

The academies were designed to replace failing schools, but the government has been criticised by an the education select committee for pressing ahead with major expansion of the scheme without proper evaluation.

In a hard-hitting report, which criticises many key areas of Labour's education policy, MPs on the Commons committee complain "it is difficult to detect a coherent overarching strategy for the government's proposals for education".

They recommend that the projected £5bn earmarked for setting up 200 academy schools is withheld until they are proven to be cost-effective.