Nicky Morgan moves to counter Michael Gove's "toxic" legacy Nicky Morgan has embarked on her clearest bid yet to distance herself from her predecessor Michael Gove by declaring that she is no ideological warrior seeking to impose a world view on schools and young people. In a sign of the Tories" determination to overcome what is seen as a toxic legacy after Gove lost the trust of teachers" leaders, Morgan said education should be about a partnership rather than a war of ideas. "My request is that we tone down the rhetoric and let's have a reasoned debate based on what works," the education secretary said. For those looking for an ideological sparring partner to do battle with, quite simply I'm not your woman. Morgan insisted that she remained committed to Gove's reforms, which have paved the way for a new generation of free schools and a dramatic expansion of the academy programme introduced by Tony Blair. She made it clear, however, that she felt uncomfortable with Gove's apparently relentless battle with the education establishment, dubbed "the blob" by his allies. Morgan said: "I acknowledge this. Somewhere along the way, what got lost in the heated debates and the drive for change, was who these changes were for and why we were making them. So let me be clear here and now. As education secretary I'm committed to implementing these reforms, not because I'm an ideological warrior, determined to impose my world view on schools and young people. The reason I support these reforms is for one simple reason. Because they work. Because this ambition to focus on the basics and driving up standards matches the ambition of parents at school gates around the country. Morgan replaced Gove in the summer reshuffle after the Tories" Australian election campaign consultant Lynton Crosby and other key figures warned the prime minister that his relations with teachers" leaders had become so toxic it could inflict severe damage on the party in May. Gove was initially shocked to be moved to the post of chief whip, but also saw the benefits of being involved more deeply in Downing Street's day-to-day political operation. Morgan moved to the education department with instructions to maintain and develop the substance of Gove's reforms. She was also told to mend fences with the teaching profession and to take the reforms away from an ideological battle back to its original mission to improve the chances of school children. The education secretary underlined her new approach when she said: "Too often education policy is portrayed as a war between rival camps of true believers, when the reality couldn't be further from the truth. And the best example of that? The thousands of teachers across the country who have quietly put our changes to the education system into action. Education is a partnership. It isn't a battle or a war. It isn't pitting different parts of the education system against each other. Nor is it about false dichotomies between subjects we value and subjects we don't. Morgan's use of the phrase "false dichotomies" was a pointed dig at Dominic Cummings, Gove's former special adviser. He regularly deploys the phrase, which criticises those who say that a choice can only be made between one of two options, in his lengthy blog posts. Morgan has been irritated by the regular interventions of Cummings, whose public criticism of Downing Street was instrumental in persuading David Cameron to move his old friend and ally in the reshuffle. Morgan's criticism of those who want to engage in an ideological struggle is also aimed at Tristram Hunt, the shadow education secretary, who has embarked on what she regards as a divisive strategy by criticising public schools and unqualified teachers. Morgan references the Conservative's first education secretary, Margaret Thatcher, to say that she would not change tack on the substance of Gove's policies. "Those waiting for U-turns will have to continue to do so with baited breath, because none of this means a renunciation of the first four years of this government's reform, nor any slowing in the pace of change," she said.