Minister, thank you for your statement and the formal introduction of this Bill. The Bill presents us with an opportunity in Wales to mould tertiary education to fit the specific needs here in Wales, and to ensure our learners in Wales receive the quality of tertiary education they deserve and the support they require on their educational journeys.

It's fantastic to see that for the first time in Welsh legislation we will bring together in one place Wales's higher education, further education, local authority maintained sixth forms, apprenticeships, adult community learning as well as a responsibility for research and innovation, and we do welcome that from these benches.

But, the tertiary education sector is still recovering—sorry, my throat's going—after 18 months of serious disruption. Education providers are finding themselves exhausted as they try to keep schools and colleges open because of high levels of staff absence. So, I do have to question the timing of this, and perhaps ask, 'Why now?'—why, when we're at a critical point of this pandemic and embarking on a new curriculum? And I’d appreciate the Minister’s reassurance on that.

ColegauCymru have previously raised several concerns over the delivery of the tertiary education and research Bill, with an emphasis on the absence of learner protection plans and a learner engagement code. So, I’m pleased to see that these are now included within the Bill.

It would be also great to hear more about the appointments to the board—the experience and neutrality and that sort of thing—the requirements to be on it. We welcome the introduction, of course, of the learner representatives on the board, and I think that’s a fantastic idea. I was just wondering how this is going to look in practice. Will these members be appointed, elected, employed? Will these be paid positions, where they’d be expected to be present at every meeting? The levels of accountability, of course, upon these individuals will be significant, given the position they hold and the financial responsibility of this board. So, just a little bit more information on that would be fantastic.

Gone are the days where having a certain key skill or qualifications offered a job guarantee now, but, when it comes to 16-19 FE provisions, funding and quality assurance needs a single approach, one of progression of the learner and their outcomes, at the heart of this Bill. The challenge is not through the protection of the current provision, but rather the creation of effective pathways for progression. One way in which we believe we can tackle this problem would be to implement better curriculum planning for the 14-19 age group and develop holistic routes for progression of learners. Minister, could you, please, outline whether you’ve looked into these concerns and how you intend to work to create a more joined-up approach for school to FE transition? Thank you.

In addition, while we welcome the inclusion of sixth-form colleges in this Bill, it's still unclear from the Bill how the proposed reforms of post-16 education will complement and enhance the new curriculum and ensure continuity and engagement between pre-16 and post-16 education providers, especially when considering the setbacks education providers have experienced during this pandemic. So, I’d be grateful, Minister, if you could outline what measures you’ll be taking to ensure that seamless connection between the two.

COVID will also have a lasting impact on the lives of learners across Wales for several years. Three factors that I feel need addressing are the impact on young people who have been displaced from direct employment and work experience; a better understanding of how people in the 2020-21 cohort have transitioned from school into all forms of post-16 education; and how support will be provided to middle and lower attainers who have faced greater difficulties with progression into FE. So, Minister, could you outline what plans you intend to put in place to support people who fall within these groups?

A recent report by the Evidence for Policy and Practice Information and Co-ordinating Centre, the EPPI, also highlighted concerns about grade inflation in 2020 and 2021, which has led to higher competition for universities, while participation in vocational learning has fallen.

And finally, we welcome the changes for apprenticeships, of course, and I think that more control is necessary here. We need to have a much bigger focus on apprenticeships, in fact, and the potential that they have to provide the jobs of the future, including green jobs and high-skilled jobs. We must ensure that the sector is diversified to enhance opportunities and introduce more rigorous targets to expand the apprenticeship programme for more people, making it more reactive to the needs of our local communities, businesses and our economy. I’d be grateful if the Minister would outline what provisions have been considered for the 14-16 age group, as some colleges work with them on initiatives such as the junior apprenticeships.

Minister, we cannot stress enough the importance of lifelong learning in this day and age. Lifelong learning is an important part of post-16 and adult education, and an emphasis needs to be made to highlight its importance going forward.

Finally, the challenges people have faced over the pandemic have motivated many people to learn new skills and gain new qualifications, which has led to better employment prospects. So, it is clear that the appetite is there. It also plays into contributing to a sustainable and innovative economy as the employment market adapts and changes around us. But we need to ensure that we make lifelong learning and retraining opportunities accessible, feasible, and cost effective for people to access them, and that they provide equality of opportunity. They need to fit around people’s daily lives. Minister, what discussions have you had with FE and HE sectors to work out how this could be delivered and in an accessible way? Thank you.