Who should write the curriculum?

Should independent experts write the curriculum? It’s an attractive idea: an impartial body to define a curriculum free from ideological whim and constant political tinkering. Just what teachers want, right?

At a recent debate at the ASE annual conference the response from the floor was a resounding 'yes'. Although, given the time constraint, not much of a debate actually took place. 

Thinking about this afterwards, I found myself always coming back to that term – independent – and its lack of definition. This one loose thread has led me to the 'no' camp.

Is there such a thing as an 'independent expert' and if not where does that leave us?