6. Will the Minister make a statement on educational attainment in Wales? OQ56758

As we stated in the new programme for government, we are committed to eliminating inequality at every level of society, which includes implementing policies in education that will give everyone the best life chances. We recognise that this requires radical action, innovative thinking and strong co-ordination and collaboration.

Can I thank the Minister for that response? Educational attainment is the key to economic development. Successful parts of the world have economies built on highly qualified individuals, not on driving companies to bring branch factories for a short time. What is Welsh Government doing to continue to improve educational attainment in our schools and universities in order to improve our economy?

Well, the entire reformed programme for government is intended to deliver those outcomes. So, in a school setting, the curriculum reforms that we're introducing are designed to enable our young people to take full advantage of the opportunities that the world around them presents, both economically and more broadly than that. The Member will know that in the first year, we'll be introducing legislation to reform post-compulsory education to ensure that we have a further education and higher education sector that does all it can to create that learner pathway that is collaborative and flexible, which reflects the needs of our society and a sustainable economy, which depends on innovation and has an international focus. That's the kind of vision we have for our education system in Wales, and that's the entire underpinning of our reform programme.