Former UK Education Secretary Michael Gove has offered to work with the SNP to help turn around Scotland's struggling schools.
Gove, who uses the title Lord Gove of Torry as a nod to his Aberdeen roots, made the unexpected approach after a study revealed maths and literacy scores among teenagers in Scotland had hit record lows.
The Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa), carried out by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), showed pupils in Scotland are falling notably behind their counterparts in England.
The former Conservative Education Secretary's policies implemented between 2010 and 2014 are credited for the strong performance of pupils in England in the Pisa rankings, The Times reports.
Writing in The Times, Gove blamed Scottish government decisions for underperforming pupils in north of the border, including a presumption against exclusion which he said led to poor discipline levels.
Offering to meet SNP Education Secretary Mairi McAllan and Ivan McKee, who is charge of public sector reform, Gove said he has previously worked with Labour and Liberal Democrat politicians to push through reforms helping "catapult England up those international league tables”.
He wrote: “I can show you the schools where working class children from disadvantaged backgrounds get amazing results and move on to the best universities and great jobs.
“I can introduce you to the teachers making a difference every day with a stretching curriculum, proper tests and a love of their subject. I can bring together colleagues from across politics to support you in the changes which give children a better future.
“Everyone who wants a better future for Scotland should be willing to work with good people in the Scottish government. I want to think the best of those running the country of my birth, where my mum, sister, nephews and niece still live … So, Mairi, and Ivan, are we on?”