School exams could be scrapped next summer, a senior Tory MP has said.
Robert Halfon, chair of the Commons Education Committee, said there was only a "50:50" chance that GCSE and A-Levels would go ahead as normal next year.
He urged the under-fire exams regulator Ofqual to decide by October whether to press ahead with exams or to award grades based on teacher assessments.
It comes amid sustained criticism over the Government's handling of education during the pandemic, which saw ministers perform a chaotic u-turn on A-Level results.
Teachers were asked to predict grades for students after exams were cancelled due to coronavirus.
However some 40% of results were downgraded by a computer algorithm, prompting an outcry over the impact on the future of thousands of teenagers.
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson initially stood by the results, before performing a humiliating u-turn days later.
Ofqual boss Sally Collier stood down last week following the fiasco.
"It is 50:50 that exams go ahead next summer," Mr Halfon told the Sunday Times.
"Schools, the Department for Education and Ofsted need to work out ... how much disruption there will be to pupils' learning in the coming year.
"Serious analysis needs to be done and then they need to make an announcement about exams within the next few weeks."
He warned that teenagers may have fallen too far behind due to months out of school and raised fears that a second wave could force pupils back to home learning.
Mr Halfon plans to grill Ofqual bosses on plans for exams at a Commons hearing next week.
It comes as Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said children would suffer if they failed to return to school next week.
"If a child is not in school, they stand to lose far more than just a few months of learning. It could well put a huge dent in their future life chances," he said in a letter to parents.
"Education is a birthright, so let's make sure we get all children back - back to learning, back to playing and back to being kids again."
Mr Williamson insisted he was not planning to resign despite criticism of his record - saying he would continue to "graft away".
Teaching unions have blasted the Government for releasing crucial guidance for secondary schools in lockdown areas on Friday night - just days before schools are due to reopen.
The measures include plans for a "rota system" to reduce student numbers, something ministers had previously ruled out.
