Michael Gove has called the Conservatives "the real party of social justice" as they are driven by a "moral purpose".

The education secretary likened the challenge of eliminating illiteracy and innumeracy to past challenges to eradicate deadly diseases, as the inability to read or comprehend basic arithmetic was a "blight" on the future of the UK and its young people.

Many people in primary and secondary teaching jobs in London and beyond may take the minister's words with a heavy dose of scepticism, especially as he is part of a government that has so far failed to act on teachers' concerns about working conditions in the classroom.

Speaking to an audience at the British Chambers of Commerce annual conference, Mr Gove said too many teenagers were leaving the UK school system without gaining adequate qualifications in English and maths - a situation that was making them "effectively unemployable".

"We need to ensure that in our lifetime we eliminate illiteracy and innumeracy in Britain," he said.

"In the same way as our forefathers more than a hundred years ago knew they had to eradicate polio and tuberculosis if children were to flourish... so we must ensure no child grows up in modern Britain with their futures irredeemably blighted by illiteracy and innumeracy."

The education secretary believes his exam reform, which will bring in new tests and more rigorous teaching, will provide the framework to ensure at least 85 per cent of current UK primary school pupils achieve good grades in English and maths by the time they take their GCSE.

Speaking at the same event, shadow chancellor Ed Balls said Labour preferred a tougher approach to under-performing schools than the current government, suggesting the party would be prepared to act on flagging schools rather than letting them "wither away". He also reiterated Labour's pledge to ensure further English and maths lessons will be a core part of the new tech baccalaureate qualification.