A state exam authority has been handed an F for leadership and culture, with a scathing review uncovering rampant finger-pointing and allegations of bullying.

Triggered by a major exams blunder, independent reviewer Yehudi Blacher considered shutting down the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority.

A mistake by a junior staff member on the 2024 papers allowed year 12 pupils to access questions in advance from instructional cover sheets at the front of online booklets.

The blunder affected 65 of 116 Victorian Certificate of Education exams.

The first part of the review into the debacle led to the body's entire board being sacked in April, with the second instalment laying bare its organisational and cultural issues.

"Put bluntly, many of the root causes of the issues within the

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