Higher Education

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:32 pm on 20 March 2018.

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Photo of Darren Millar Darren Millar Conservative 2:32, 20 March 2018

First Minister, one group of young people who often miss out on a university education are those from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller backgrounds. And you'll know that part of the reason for that is their poor performance at GCSEs compared to their peers. They get 30 per cent lower in terms of the individuals who actually pass five or more CGSEs at grades A* to C. Now, one of the things which your Government has done recently, which is going to make it more difficult for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children to be able to access a university education, is the axing of the minority ethnic achievement grant. Much of that, of course, was used by schools in order to support the education of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children. Will you consider reversing that decision, and what additional support are you going to provide on top of it, in order that we can address this inequality?