Conspiracy theorists are beginning to worry that the Scots may have forced Sir Ron Dearing's hand over concerns about standards in higher education. The decision by the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council not to be involved in the new single quality agency has given Sir Ron little choice but to seek a UK-wide solution, the pundits say. Creating some kind of national qualifications body is the next logical step. A happy coincidence, perhaps, since sources close to Sir Ron believe that was part of his plan anyway.