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Wales’ education secretary has dismissed the Conservatives’ focus on the nation’s poor 2022 PISA scores, telling the Senedd it was “time to move on” from the worst-ever results.

Lynne Neagle accepted Wales needs to do better in the worldwide study of education systems as she accused the Conservatives of “harking back” to the record-low results.

In the 2022 cycle, which was delayed due to Covid, Wales’ scores decreased in mathematics, reading and science to the lowest since first taking part in 2006.

Blaming the pandemic, Ms Neagle told the Senedd it was “time to move on” – with 15-year-olds currently sitting the latest PISA tests which are held every three years.

She said: “I am disappointed by the relentless focus on challenges within the system, rather than ever taking the opportunity to celebrate achievements.”

‘Systemic failure’

Defending her record during a Tory debate on Wednesday (October 22), she celebrated a rise in school attendance as well as improvement in GCSE and A-level results.

But the Conservatives painted a far bleaker picture, accusing the Welsh Government of “systemic failure” with the lowest PISA scores in the UK for five consecutive cycles.

In a fiery opening speech, Natasha Asghar – the party’s shadow education secretary – warned the Labour Welsh Government had “failed our children” for “far too long”

“Classrooms are overcrowded, teachers are under ever-increasing pressure, school violence is through the roof and standards are slipping, whilst ministers just make excuses,” she said. Too many pupils are being left behind.”

Tom Giffard, a fellow Tory, criticised the call to “move on”, saying: “We look at the worst PISA results anywhere in the UK… yet we have a minister who says, ‘It’s time to move on’. It is a system that is fundamentally broken, with a minister who is absolutely complacent.”

‘Zero tolerance’

The motion called on the Welsh Government to adopt a “zero-tolerance” approach to restore discipline, demanding the automatic exclusion of any pupil who brings a weapon into school.

Other proposals – which were also ultimately rejected by the Senedd – included establishing academy schools, following in England’s footsteps, and mandating the teaching of phonics.

The Conservatives were not the only party to attack Labour’s record. Plaid Cymru’s Cefin Campbell warned Wales is paying a painful price for “over 25 years of Labour failures”.

But he rejected the Conservatives’ proposed solutions, arguing Wales should not simply copy policies from England because education is devolved.

Laura Anne Jones, who defected to Reform UK, agreed with much of the Tory motion, warning the additional learning needs system was “fundamentally flawed”.

‘Positive messages’

In her response to the debate, Ms Neagle set out the context of Wales’ PISA results.

She said: “This was a time when our learners and teachers were emerging from two years of the pandemic and all the challenges that caused, and a period when few learners were taking structured exams in the same way as previous PISA cohorts.”

The education secretary, who was appointed in March 2024, pointed to improvements in reading and numeracy made by primary schools last year.

She told Senedd members the Welsh Government would ensure the systemic teaching of phonics through a new £8m project and a new national body, Dysgu.

On behaviour, Ms Neagle pointed to progress following a summit in May with work under way on mobile phones in schools, exclusions and detentions.

She concluded by raising a report published by education inspectorate Estyn that day. “Today Estyn have published their interim annual report,” she said. “I am pleased with the positive messages that are emerging around well-being, learner engagement and how schools are supporting their learners with additional learning needs.”