Welsh Language Commissioner urges government to take bold steps ahead of Senedd election
The Welsh Language Commissioner has published a report calling for the Welsh Government to ‘introduce bold interventions in favour of the language’.
According to Efa Gruffudd Jones, the next Welsh Government must act intentionally and ambitiously if we are to create more Welsh speakers and double the daily use of the language.
In the report, which is published every 5 years, the Commissioner identifies three main opportunities that need to be addressed in order to strengthen the position of the Welsh language for the future, and they are:
- Creating confident Welsh speakers through the education system
- Strengthening the use of the Welsh language in communities
- Creating workplaces that support the Welsh language.
Within these three areas ten specific priorities have been identified which outline the practical opportunities to make a real difference to the position of the Welsh language. These build on the calls in the Commissioner’s manifesto for the Senedd Cymru election, as well as her strategic plan published last year.
She said: “I am publishing this report as we approach the 2026 Senedd election, a significant election in our history as a nation.
“Whatever happens in terms of the votes, we know for certain that, for the first time, we will have 96 Members of the Senedd representing the people of Wales.
“Those members will represent new constituencies, constituencies that have Welsh-only names – a symbolic sign in itself of national confidence and pride in our language.
“But symbolism is not enough. The next Welsh Government needs to act purposefully and positively for the benefit of the Welsh language, by introducing bold interventions in favour of the language.
“This is the only way to transform the current situation if we are serious about doubling daily use and reaching a million Welsh speakers by 2050.”
The report also offers a detailed analysis of the 2021 Census results in relation to the Welsh language. Its aim is to bring the main statistics together and highlight those that are most significant to the language situation.
According to Gruffudd Jones, the analysis of the Census results is an attempt to delve deeper into the statistics and to gain a better understanding of them.
She added: “This report has three parts and as we consider the Census results in the first part, that provides a foundation for the following sections.
“We then scrutinise data from other sources about creating Welsh speakers and increasing the use of the language, and we track key policy developments in these areas. We end each section by identifying priorities and opportunities for the next five years.
“In essence, the report is an invitation to the new Welsh Government, Members of the Senedd from all parties, policymakers, and all of us who take an interest in the Welsh language, to read our analysis of the situation of the language. Only by pausing to understand and consider the state of the Welsh language today can we plan effectively for tomorrow.
“I have great ambition for the Welsh language and its speakers. I want to see a Wales where living through the medium of Welsh a genuine, everyday choice for its people, and I will remain unwavering in my commitment to achieving this.”
Support our Nation today
For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.
Efa Gruffudd Jones, the Welsh Language Commissioner, has a salary of approximately £95,000 per year – I think this is too much
The future development of the Welsh language is also connected to how we all behave. In 1990s when I was at Cardiff Uni to get into Clwb Ifor Bach you had to speak Welsh. To work in certain countries around the world you have to speak both English and that countries language. When I worked in hotels around Abergavenny in 1990s, Forte Hotels insisted that the hotel manager in locations such as Llanelli were Welsh speaking as the locals insisted on having a manager who spoke their language. If the Celtic Collection tomorrow changed its’ recruitment policy to state that… Read more »
Doing roughly more of the same with schools and business is unfortunately likely to produce roughly the same results. We always look to what we can do in schools and business etc but never look at the language itself. What changes to the language could make it easier to lean? Languages evolve.