I actually have a little bit of sympathy for the government insofar as they were in a pretty impossible position with these exam results.
Allow the teachers' predictions to stand as is, and you immediately introduce bias and favoritism into the system.
Apply an algorithm as they tried to, and now a student's grade is suddenly based not only on his or her talents, but also on the performance of kids at their school over the previous several years. Doesn't exactly seem reasonable to me for someone to have their grades dropped just because they happen to live in an area that's full of thickos!
There probably wasn't a completely fair route through this problem.
But then the government eliminates any sympathy they may have been due by making every decision in the most chaotic and back-and-forth way possible.
"We believe in this decision.....oh, wait, it looks like public opinion is against us, so let's just rip up our plans and reverse course so we do whatever's most popular today"
They did exactly the same a few months ago with the covid outbreak.
I would have more respect for the government if they would actually make a decision based on the advice they were getting, and then stick to their guns if it turned out to be unpopular - even if I disagreed with that decision myself. At least then it would look as if they had some competency and principles.
But they don't. They just seem to chart the simplest and most politically expedient course through every crisis.
Unsurprising really, as they're led by a man who has always based his principles on what's going to work best for him at any given moment.
And these jokers are supposed to be leading the country through the biggest political disruption for three generations in just a matter of months? Is there anyone now who doesn't think that the implementation of Brexit is going to be a complete and utter shambles??