I accept that the Welsh Government has ambitions for the curriculum, the target to reach 1 million Welsh speakers, and a renewal of the system for additional learning needs. I want to see many of these ambitions achieved. Without adequate funding, though, not only will these ambitions not be realised, but the next generation is going to be let down. According to the education front line, including education teaching unions—UCAC, NEU and NAHT—there is a funding crisis in Welsh schools.

I want to focus my comments on three key issues. Firstly, I want to question how the Cabinet Secretary expects any new curriculum to be implemented at the same time as such drastic cuts. I'll move on to highlight the terrible physical state of our schools that this funding squeeze has created. And, finally, I want to illustrate the effect that this funding crisis is having on schools in the Rhondda.

Much of the Government's plans for the curriculum change are to be welcomed, but, with so little funding, I'm not too hopeful for its implementation. We know that there will be fewer teaching hours for some subjects, while some subjects could disappear altogether. Music, drama, foreign languages and vocational subjects are at risk. This is largely due to the difficulties in recruiting specialist teachers and schools not being able to justify running courses with small numbers of pupils. In turn, this leads to fewer options for pupils, particularly at A-level and GCSE, and an even further loss then of specialist staff. Even where such courses are on offer, hours of teaching have often had to be reduced as schools can ill afford to pay for specialist teachers. In order to counteract the cuts, some teachers are being asked to teach a wider range of subjects beyond their level of expertise, and I'm sure that the Cabinet Secretary will agree that this is unfair for both teachers and pupils. 

Perhaps the most striking outcome of this funding crisis is the state of school buildings. The Welsh Government's twenty-first century schools programme was meant to deliver futureproof, state-of-the-art schools, with solar panels and all the very best facilities. That ambition has not been realised. Old, inadequate school buildings are unpleasant and sometimes even dangerous places for pupils and staff. Now, I know I don't need to convince the Cabinet Secretary of the positive impact of school buildings, but I briefly want to highlight—[Interruption.] Yes.