Simon Pegg slams Rishi Sunak's maths plan in expletive-filled rant

5 January 2023, 18:49 | Updated: 5 January 2023, 19:36

Simon Pegg reacts to Rishi Sunak's maths plan
Simon Pegg reacts to Rishi Sunak's maths plan. Picture: 1. Instagram/Simon Pegg 2. Stefan Rousseau - WPA Pool/Getty Images

By Jenny Mensah

The PM revealed his plan to make pupils study maths until the age of 18 and the Pegg wasn't impressed.

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Simon Pegg has launched a rant at Rishi Sunak over his maths plan.

The Prime Minister set tongues wagging this week when he revealed his plan to extend compulsory maths lessons for students until the age of 18.

The Star Trek star has since gone viral for his reaction to the news, which saw him share a passionate video on his thoughts about the subject on Instagram Stories.

Speaking to camera from his car, Pegg begins: "So Rishi Sunak, our unmandated, unelected prime minister twice removed, has decided it should be compulsory for children to learn Maths up until the age of 18 – what a pr***".

“What about arts and humanities and fostering this country's amazing reputation for creativity and self-expresison?” asked the Spaced star, adding: “What about that? What about the kids that don't want to do Maths? I hated Maths. I dropped Maths as soon as I could and I’ve never needed it other than the skillset I acquired at the age of 12.”

He finished his speech: "But no. Rishi Sunak wants a f***ing drone army of data-entering robots. F*** the Tories.

“Get rid of them. Please! F*** you, Rishi Sunak, and f*** the Tories.”

READ MORE: Nick Frost tells the origin story of his bromance with Simon Pegg

Maths whizz and former Countdown star Carol Vorderman also spoke to Radio X's Toby Tarrant this morning and also revealed her thoughts on the proposed bill.

"So obviously I'm a big fan of maths,' she told Radio X. "I have an online maths school. I've taught a million children online over the last 12 years. It's my absolute passion. I give bursaries to kids from a similar background to me to go study maths at uni. Blah. This is my thing.

"And I would say, why, oh why, oh why? Stop looking at the age. Great if people want to study to age 18, but the problems lie much earlier."

Carol Vorderman talks Rishi Sunak's maths plan

She went on: "So there are very many issues. Tech isn't used enough. Primary school teachers, if they have a fear, it's of maths, because most of them - almost all - gave up maths at 16.

"So that's what we've kind of come from and I have said and recommended that the GCSE changes so we have two different kinds.

"One is about practical numeracy, your tax returns, your mortgages and how to calculate credit. Your car, what is volume, all those things. And you forget trigonometry. Just chuck it out, because if you get to the age of..."

She added: "Can we just stop pretending and do something practical? If you're going to do something practical. Look at that. Age 14. Create something. Stop teaching to the test. Use tech a lot more, because it works and that's what I would say".

No 10. have said that further details will be set out in due course, but that Sunak’s plan is intended to raise UK standards to meet those of equivalent nations, while boosting people’s financial literacy.

READ MORE: Simon Pegg reveals whether Spaced will ever return

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