THE Conservatives will today unveil plans for a massive shake-up of Britain's education system.

Shadow schools secretary Michael Gove is expected to announce the creation of 5,000 new `private' schools, funded by the taxpayer.

The schools - which could replace failing comprehensives - would be free to parents but permitted to set their own curriculum.

They could even abandon GCSEs and A-levels, in favour of the International Baccalaureate or European or US equivalents, and be run by parents, charities, or private companies.

Mr Gove will also pledge to provide former soldiers with free teacher training and tuition fees for first degrees.

He will promise bursaries of £9,000 to hundreds of ex-servicemen and women who take teacher training, and expects up to 1,000 to apply for free university tuition.

"In 1945, the American government honoured the men and women who'd fought against fascism - the greatest generation - with a piece of legislation, the GI Bill, which granted returning heroes the right to free university education," Mr Gove will say.

"Britain should do the same."

Mr Gove's speech will signal that the Conservatives intend to make education the key battleground in the run-up to the next general election.

His comments come after the Rev Tim Hastie-Smith, chairman of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, said the government must stop meddling in the state sector and put decision-making back in the hands of the schools themselves.

Mr Hastie-Smith, said all schools should be allowed the same autonomy that the independent sector enjoys.

He said the maintained sector is `smothered' by political control, centrally-set targets and red tape.

Mr Gove and party leader David Cameron believe giving parents more choice will have real resonance with the swing voters among Britain's middle classes.

The conference, in Birmingham, will also hear this morning from former party chief Iain Duncan Smith on the issue of poverty.

Later, there will be keynote speeches on crime and social breakdown from Tory frontbenchers.