Can I just say 'well done' to all the people who signed both of these petitions? My group will not only be noting these today but supporting what the petitioners are asking for. Petitions themselves are a part of our history, and in particular they were encouraged by that great Plaid favourite, Edward I. Monarchs and Governments had for decades been routinely dismissing prayers for aid or justice made by the aggrieved, and it was Edward who encouraged them to bring forward their business directly to Parliament to influence the Government and the King. Whether that was about being a good king to his people or simply a public relations stunt to improve his reputation, who knows? But the decision was the beginning of an evolution of the concept of Parliament into a place where the voice of people, all people, is heard and respected.

I'd just like to pick out an issue from each of the petitions, and the first is from the first petition. What's in and what's out? What goes into this? Who still cares about Edward I, for example, and why? It's over 700 years ago since he was part of our story, and that's a long time to hold a grudge, so why even mention him? And if the compulsory teaching of Welsh history means that our children only ever hear of him as the villain who battered Wales and sneaked a changeling into the role of Prince of Wales, then they're going to get short-changed anyway. If, however, he's presented to Welsh pupils as a real case study about what motivates powerful figures of history and the ripple effects of their decisions, then he's a really interesting example. Was he just a violent narcissist? Was he a creature hyperconscious of his divine duty? Was he immersed in contemporary expectations of leadership? In judging who he was and what he did, what do we learn by comparing him to Stalin or Mao Tse-tung, for example, by applying modern mores? What was his effect on the everyday life of everyday people and how does that compare with our relationship with people in power these days? There's a school term's worth of history lesson right there, and every bit of it will count as Welsh history.

Welsh history is not just about what happened in Wales, but how events and decisions elsewhere affected Wales. What if the mine owners and merchants of South America 300 years ago had decided to get their copper smelted on the river mouths in south-west England? Who would be living in Swansea today? So where on earth do you start if you're a school leader committed to your pupils receiving a good experience of learning about Welsh history when this tiny fragment could spark such a chain of discussion? And I think it's important to highlight that this petition calls for a common corpus of Welsh history to be taught in all schools, but it's not asking to influence how it's taught. Nevertheless, it points to a deep desire that all our children should grow up knowing more about how the nation in which they are being raised got to be that way. And perhaps this is a good moment to introduce the evidence presented to the Children, Young People and Education Committee by these very children. They have told us that they want to be learning the same things as their peers, and that's not just history. And so I don't think this undermines the freedom of the new curriculum. The design of this curriculum, in part, is to be informed by what pupils want to learn, so here is a clear instruction that they want at least some common ground across Wales.

My second point is about the local curriculum and this involves the second petition. There will be communities in Wales who might think that black and ethnic minorities have no more relevance to their local curriculum than Edward I. Now, that is an incorrect conclusion, as the petition itself reveals. And history is a bit like the universe—we can only see about 4 per cent of it, but the other 96 per cent is no less real and no less part of the explanation of why we are, who we are and where we are. And while there will be other overlooked contributors to the history of Wales, the least they can do is start looking, and start looking at black and ethnic minorities who have been here for centuries, just as we look at how events and decisions made about people of colour in other parts of the world have affected our domestic story. 

I suppose the story of the Chartists will make the cut in whatever finds its way into any common syllabus. They, of course, are some of our most celebrated petitioners in UK history, let alone Wales. Events didn't turn out quite as they expected, but little did they know that Edward I could claim a tiny little bit of their story, or, indeed, the stories of MI5. As of 2010, their ranks boasted more medieval history majors than holders of any other degree. Valued for their skills in working with minimal and unreliable information, history is always useful, and that is one hell of a ripple effect. Thank you.