No.

Oxbridge intake from state schools has decreased since grammar schools were largely abolished and studies have shown social mobility has decreased. [Interruption.] Listen again: social mobility has decreased since the abolition of grammar schools. If you don’t care about working-class kids, carry on with your policy. To those who say grammar schools are for the elite, we say, ‘Yes, they’re for the academically elite, not the financial elite’. In the same way that grammar schools are, for those academically bright children, an opportunity, we should be developing vocational colleges to offer children who have other aspirations the right opportunities.

Ms Williams’s predecessor, Mr Lewis, previously admitted there could be questions about us taking our eye off the ball in the mid-2000s around the basics in education. He still, nevertheless, insisted Welsh Ministers took heed of previous poor PISA readings in 2009 and instituted one of the most radical and ambitious reform programmes that Welsh education has ever seen. The reality is, though, that there was nothing radical about these reforms. This Government continues to tinker around the edges, akin to rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic. The idea that another mild policy initiative or bureaucratic reorganisation could achieve the scale of change necessary is a complete nonsense. We need better education for all, but achieving that requires bold steps. As the former chief inspector of schools makes clear, one size does not fit all—it’s still relevant. And the idea that children should be disadvantaged for political reasons is morally wrong and indefensible. Young people need their Government to represent their interests and fight for their future. Denying them choice deprives them of opportunity.

The UK Government’s announcement that they have adopted UKIP policy is welcome, but now, here in this Chamber, we need to work together to create a system that works for all. We need to give local people a chance to have a say over what school systems work in their area for their children. We call on this Chamber to support this motion and on the Welsh Government to introduce legislation to allow local people, where practicable and desirable, to create new grammar schools. Thank you.