Commenting on the speech from the Education Minister on Labour's future schools policies, Paul Davies AM, Shadow Minister for Education, said:

"People will be forgiven for being a little cynical of a relaunch of Labour's education policies weeks before an election when Labour politicians have been running the education system in Wales for 12 years.

"Successive reports have shown how young people are being let down by falling standards despite the hard work of teachers, parents and governors, in an education system in which too much power resides in the hands of Ministers.

"Teachers in Wales make an enormous contribution to the lives of our young people and they should be allowed to focus on their jobs rather than being burdened with targets, bureaucracy and criticism from Ministers.

"Welsh Conservatives would give more power to schools to make more decisions over their future, directly fund schools to give them control over their budgets and free up teachers to teach.

"It is also time to review the curriculum to ensure it is fit for purpose by placing sufficient focus on essential life skills such as modern foreign languages, financial management and entrepreneurship."