Teaching is an honourable profession. We all have family members, friends and acquaintances who teach. We have all benefited from the hard work, dedication, effort and love that our teachers showed us from our early years and then when we became adults. We all hold fond memories and perhaps not so fond memories of our time in school. It is a vital time in our lives when we learn so much, not just academically, but about social situations, forming bonds with other people and learning what is and isn't socially acceptable. I have fond memories myself of school. I didn't quite enjoy school a lot of the time, but I can remember having quite lively debates with my teachers about world events, and it was always quite encouraging, and they always encouraged me to have a go and got me involved in the school council and tried to make a real difference for pupils. I do really appreciate the encouragement that I was given in school.

School years are vitally important for our development. They shape who we are. But, all too often we measure this in academic success—in GCSE and A-level results, and not the life skills that we develop while we are in school. We can all remember that teacher that went above and beyond and that inspired us and made us believe in ourselves. Having the right number of qualified teachers, assistants and school staff is vital.

We are currently experiencing a shortage of teachers qualifying and wanting to come to Wales to teach. This is no easy task to fix, Minister, and I don't envy any Government trying to get to grips with this issue. But, it has been going on for some years, and we need to seriously look at what is happening.

Are teachers underpaid? I would argue, absolutely—especially those who are newly qualified. It takes years to train to be an educator, and when qualifying, many just can't live the life that they deserve with the wages that they are on. With house prices currently out of control and the standard of living becoming evermore expensive, teachers simply aren't paid a wage that reflects the work that they do.