FAKE degrees, GCSEs and A-Levels for sale on the internet undermine Britain's education system, an MP warned today.
Huddersfield MP Barry Sheerman, chairman of the Commons education committee, said he would urge Education Secretary Charles Clarke to investigate when he comes before the committee next week.
The move follows a report in today's Guardian newspaper that a British website is offering bogus qualifications which appear to be from genuine academic institutions for £165 a time.
Mr Sheerman said: "It is very worrying and something my select committee should be looking at.
"We are renowned for high quality education in this country and anything that undermines this should be taken seriously, whether it is fake degrees on the internet or phoney universities."
He said "decisive action" was needed against people who give false information when applying for a job, which is a criminal offence, and also those who supply the material.
The inquiry centres on a website which offers a realistic-looking medical degree from Oxford University, a bachelor of arts from the University of Strathclyde and a full set of GCSEs all at A pass in the name of a student still awaiting his real results.
The report says the "qualifications" were delivered in two days and came complete with fake signatures, watermarks and stamps.
When shown one of the bogus degree certificates, Dr Peter West, secretary of Strathclyde University, said: "It does look quite authentic. It is deeply offensive to us and all graduates who have worked for their degrees."
A University of Oxford spokesman added: "The integrity of academic awards is a matter of concern not just to those universities that are specifically named, but to all higher education institutions."
