We've had promises, in the years that I've been in this institution, that we would see an improvement, and we've not seen any improvement. That's my point. 

So, as is noted in the 'PISA 2018 Insights and Interpretations' report, over the past two decades, PISA has become the world's premier yardstick for comparing quality, equity and efficiency in learning outcomes across countries, and an influential force for education reform. This premier yardstick has seen Wales record the worst results of any nation in our United Kingdom. Science is at 488 points here; maths, 487; and reading, 483. These are all lower than England, Northern Ireland and Scotland. Now, even Welsh Government officials have admitted in their own technical briefing that none of the statistics represent any significant improvement since 2015. In fact, there has been no statistically significant improvement in Wales in PISA scores in maths and reading since 2006.

Now, I am particularly concerned about reading. We were 20 points behind the lowest scoring—Northern Ireland. Welsh pupils are less likely to read books than pupils across the OECD, and 44 per cent of pupils in Wales rarely or never read books. Now, a major contributor to this, of course, is the fundamental lack of funding and resources. Nearly half of Welsh headteachers considered that a lack of educational material, such as textbooks, a library and IT equipment were hindering their capacity to teach. Last month, I challenged the First Minister on the content of the report published by Great School Libraries: only 67 per cent of schools in Wales have access to a designated school library space. That, again, is less than England. And it is thought that only 9 per cent of schools in Wales have a library budget. Clearly, more funding is needed.

This is actually supported by NASUWT’s latest figures, which estimated the funding gap between England and Wales to be £645. This is outrageous considering that, for every £1 spent on education in England, £1.20 comes to the Welsh Government. I see people shaking their heads. Tomorrow is a general election, and I can tell you that people are sick and tired of this institution blaming the UK Government, blaming austerity. The money comes here. How you spend it is the critical factor.

The seriousness of the situation is clear when considering that Sibieta Economics of Education have estimated that in order to maintain expenditure on schools at the same real-terms level as 2016-17, the Welsh Government must spent an extra £120 million per year by 2021. Now, in comparison, our Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, is enabling an education budget bounce, as £1.24 billion in extra funding will be coming to Wales as a consequence of extra funding for education in England. The question we all ask as AMs in the Welsh Conservatives is: how will that money be spent here in Wales? That is the question.

Indeed, the Welsh Local Government Association have captured the situation beautifully—'It's a bit like trying to run a marathon with a lead weight tied around your neck. The funding is always the elephant in the room'. Their words, not mine. There are options you can consider, such as the reform to school funding. According to the Department for Education, the new arrangements will provide up to 6 per cent gains per pupil for underfunded schools by 2019-20.

To be clear, if we do not see major change, the 500 target for 2021 is likely to be missed. So, in response to the PISA results, I do believe that we need to see positive action, including a guarantee now today that all the extra money from the UK Government will be spent on our schools, and, two, that you will consider the funding methodology reform in England as a model going forward for change here in Wales. Thank you.