§ 9. Sir David KnoxTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much was spent per pupil in primary schools in Wales in the most recent year for which figures are available; and what was the figure for 1978–79, at constant prices.
§ Mr. RedwoodIn 1992–93, current expenditure per pupil in primary schools in Wales was £1,590. The equivalent constant price figure for 1978–79 was £1,067. That is an increase of a massive 49 per cent. in real spending per pupil.
§ Sir David KnoxDoes my right hon. Friend agree that those figures show an impressive increase in expenditure for primary school pupils in Wales? Is he satisfied that that increased expenditure is reflected in an improvement in standards?
§ Mr. RedwoodMy right hon. Friend is right to say that it is a big increase. It reflects generous increases in teachers' wages and decent educational provision in our primary schools. Like him, I want even higher standards, and I am not happy that 28 per cent. of seven-year-olds in primary schools in Wales are achieving only level 1 in arithmetic whereas they should be achieving level 2, which is the right standard for seven-year-olds. That means that we are still letting too many seven-year-olds down and I have asked inspectors to pay attention to teaching methods, to see what succeeds and what does not so that we can spread best practice more widely.