Cefin Campbell calls for Welsh Government response to tackle dwindling Welsh language speakers in heartlands

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00:00Llywydd, will the Welsh Government be formally responding to the Commission for Welsh-Speaking

00:07Communities report, namely, ëEmpowering Communities, Strengthening the Welsh Languageí, published

00:12in August 2024?

00:13OAQ52034

00:14Carwyn Jones AM We are working across Government to prepare

00:17a response to the reportís recommendations.

00:19The Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Welsh Language has already announced his intention

00:24to publish our response to the report at the Urdd Eisteddfod in May of this year.

00:29Llyr Gruffydd AM Well, thank you very much.

00:31Iím pleased to hear that there is a clear date set.

00:35Because youíll remember, seven months ago, you received the final report of the Commission

00:42in the National Eisteddfod in Pontypridd, and you know too that it is a very important

00:48piece of work that includes a number of recommendations in vitally important areas in terms of housing,

00:55planning, the economy and so on.

00:59This follows, of course, a crisis in those Welsh-speaking strongholds, where Welsh is

01:04spoken as a language every dayóthe areas that you and I represent in the Mid and West

01:09Wales region.

01:11In terms of Carmarthenshire, weíve seen, of course, a decline from 50 per cent in 2011

01:17able to speak Welsh, to 43.9 per cent in 2011, and 39.9 per cent in 2021.

01:26So, it is a crisis.

01:28Youíve responded to the question that I intended to ask at the end, namely, when exactly this

01:34report will receive a response from the Government.

01:38The additional question, therefore, is, will the recommendations of the report be acted

01:44upon during this Senate term?

01:47Llyr Gruffydd AM Well, thank you very much.

01:51I remember formally receiving this report.

01:55It was the first formal event for me as First Minister.

02:00I was in a state of shock at the time, I have to say, but I do think it was a very important

02:04report.

02:05Itís important that we take time now to look at the recommendations and consider which

02:11we can accept.

02:12What I can say is that, next year, there will be a minimum of £100,000 to every Menteri

02:22aeth as a result of the budgetóthe budget that you voted againstóbut also we have allocated

02:31£1 million to support Welsh in Carmarthenshire.

02:36I think itís very important that we keep the level of Welsh up in our strongholds.

02:41There will be another report following on from this one that will look at the Welsh

02:47language across the whole of Wales, but you will receive a response from the relevant

02:52Minister at the end of this year.