Thank you, Mark. I am very clear that there can be real benefits—academic, cultural and social—to pupils in communities through the delivery of high-quality education in small and rural schools. I know, and parents across rural Wales know, that small, rural schools can play an important role in raising standards and extending opportunity for all.

I'm convinced that there is an opportunity to strengthen the code. It's a promise that I made in opposition and it is a promise that I am fulfilling and following through on with the consultation, but it is correct to say that it will not be retrospective. If the Member has concerns about the way in which local authorities are conducting their school organisation and school places policy, then I would be very, very content to look at that. These processes are complex and can be time-consuming, and sometimes they are time-consuming because officials spend a great deal of time ensuring that local authorities have complied with the existing code and, I hope, will comply with a strengthened code following the consultation.