Diolch, Llywydd. Thank you. This debate is a first for the Petitions Committee as it actually covers two petitions, both of which concern the teaching of history in our schools. We welcome the opportunity to discuss these petitions together and we believe that this is a timely debate, given that the new curriculum for Wales is currently being scrutinised and due to be taught from 2022. The petitions we are discussing today both relate to what students learn about the history of Wales and its people. Both have demonstrated strong public support.

I will start by outlining each petition and its context before moving to the points of similarity between them. These lie in several questions about how schools and teachers will be guided and supported to equip our young people with the knowledge proposed by the petitions. The first petition received, petition 992, concerns the teaching of Welsh history. It was submitted by Elfed Wyn Jones, having collected 7,927 signatures. It calls for the Welsh Government to create a common body of knowledge about Welsh history, and for this to be taught to all pupils in Wales. It argues that this history and heritage is crucial to an understanding of modern Wales and that key events and subjects in the nation's history should be taught to everyone.