First, may I say that PISA remains a very important indicator of how the Welsh education system is performing? It’s not the only indicator, but it is an important one if our students are to compete in a worldwide economy when they leave the education system. The Member will be aware that the last round of PISA tests were undertaken by Welsh students in the autumn of last year. We expect the publication of those results in the autumn of this year. I hope that we will make improvements, but I’m sure the Member will forgive me that, having just taken up this role some months after those tests were taken, I’m not in a position to have any influence on them.

What I am clear about is that the successful implementation of a new curriculum, based around Donaldson’s ‘Successful Futures’, gives us the best opportunity for our children to compete internationally with their counterparts across the world, and that will certainly be my focus in coming months to make sure that that curriculum is developed and that schools and teachers are in a position to deliver on that.