The idea that making school-leavers swear an oath to Queen and country will somehow make them more committed citizens as they set off into adulthood is ridiculous.

We're talking about the Facebook/Big Brother generation. To them, the Queen is an old lady in a big hat who, like grandma, is wheeled for Christmas lunch.

And allegiance to country? Allegiance to favourite band, football team, youth 'tribe' - these things matter to teenagers. Not swearing an oath to a society that acts like it would prefer to hide all teenagers away on a desert island until they're old enough to start work in a call centre.

The teenagers know what this is - another headline-grabbing gimmick from a Prime Minister too scared of losing his job to tackle anything that matters.

— Teacher