The petition references a similar recommendation made by the Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee as part of its inquiry into the teaching of Welsh history. That committee noted that taking this approach would allow all pupils to have an understanding of how their country has been shaped by local and national events, within the context of Welsh, British and international histories. That recommendation was rejected by the Welsh Government on the basis that the new curriculum is purpose led and intentionally moves away from specifying lists of topics and content to be taught. Instead, as the Minister has outlined on other occasions, the new curriculum seeks to give teachers and schools the freedom to take their own decisions about what is taught within a broad national framework.

Now, if I may digress slightly, this tension between the vision for the new curriculum and calls for specific subjects and issues to be taught as part of it has been a regular feature of Petitions Committee meetings over the past few years. It is a genuine tension, and it illuminates the crucial importance of getting the guidance and the resources that will accompany the curriculum right. That issue is at the heart of both of these petitions.

To outline the argument made by this petition further, the petitioner asks how can we understand the society in which we live if we cannot understand what has happened in our past. He argues that the extent to which pupils are taught about key moments in this history is variable and wants this to be addressed by the new curriculum. Central to the petition is a call for core historical content to be established and for resources to be developed to support schools and teachers to deliver consistent teaching, a point I will return to later on.

I will leave it to the Minister to outline the way in which she has responded to these arguments. However, I will mention that the Petitions Committee has considered written evidence from Estyn, which is currently conducting a review of the teaching of Welsh history in schools. It is seeking examples of best practice and may end up making its own suggestions. The work, of course, has been badly affected by the pandemic and is now not likely to report until summer 2021.

I will now move on to the other petition in this debate, which is also the one thousandth petition to be considered by the Petitions Committee, certainly a significant landmark for our processes. It is also one of the largest petitions we have received, having gathered—and I did say one of the largest petitions we have received—34,736 signatures after it was submitted by Angharad Owen in June of this year. The petition was submitted following the killing of George Floyd by a police officer in the USA and the protests that followed across the world, many, of course, linked to the Black Lives Matter movement. The petition is one of the fastest growing petitions to the Senedd, reflecting the importance of the issues it raises and the pressing need for us to do more to tackle racism in our society.

In Britain, many of the protests that followed George Floyd's death focused on the legacy of colonialism and slavery. This petition calls for that history, and specifically the part that Wales played in it, to be represented in the curriculum. The petition argues that the British empire has sometimes been glamorised, whilst the global impact of colonialism has also been downplayed, with a direct impact upon the lives of black and minority ethnic people in Wales today.

Where this petition is focused is on ensuring that sufficient coverage is given to teaching about the legacy of these aspects of our history in our schools, including the role Wales played and the impact on black and minority ethnic people in Wales. The petitioner has acknowledged that teaching these issues can be daunting for teachers. It can be a highly charged subject with a direct personal relevance to the experiences and perspectives of individuals as well as current world events. Therefore, the petition argues that additional resources and support are required to equip teachers with the information and confidence to address these subjects appropriately with their students.

Responding to the petition, the Minister has referred to a working group established to consider black and minority ethnic histories as part of the story of Wales under the chairing of Professor Charlotte Williams. I will leave it to the Minister to explain more about this work, which has the potential to lead to some of the change sought by this petition, but I want to note our support for it at the outset.

In concluding my opening remarks, it is important to acknowledge that the histories raised by these two petitions are both equally part of the story of Wales and its people. A full teaching of our history, good and bad, and what it means for today's Wales, must seek to speak to everyone, and to develop in our young people a rounded and nuanced view of what came before them. That is no small challenge. However, this is an opportune moment to hold this discussion, both due to world events and the development of the new curriculum and the resources that will support it. The Petitions Committee acknowledges the flexible approach at the heart of that curriculum's design. The challenge, of course, for the Minister, and everyone involved in its development, is to ensure that people can have confidence that pupils will be provided with key information about the forces that have shaped today's Wales, and that our teachers and students will have the resources and training to support them in this. I very much look forward to hearing the contributions of other Members during the rest of this debate. Diolch yn fawr. Thank you.