Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: I've met with stakeholders and with fellow Ministers to discuss how Wales's strengths can be promoted more widely and, through our award-winning Wales brand, we're focusing on telling the Wales story for businesses that start, grow and invest here, and these stories are the foundation of our marketing programme.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Well, I think the Member's right to emphasise the point that, actually, we've gained quite significantly from Horizon in the past, and I haven't given up yet. I think there's a real opportunity for us to continue to try and engage with that programme. The nonsense of the situation is that, in the past, for the £5 billion we've put in the programme, we've got £8 billion out, as the UK. And...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: As I’ve previously stated, Cymraeg 2050 is an ambitious long-term strategy. Our initial efforts have concentrated on laying firm foundations for the future, building from the ground up to secure enough learners through the education system. We’re on track to reach our 2021 targets regarding early years and the WESPs.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: The Welsh Government recognises the importance of international trade to the economy and is committed to continuing to support businesses to export their goods and services across the world. Support is available for all stages of their export journey, from first steps through to new market entry and beyond.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: I propose to adopt a closer working relationship with the UK Government, and its departments, to ensure Wales’s interests are being represented and in helping them to understand Welsh expectations and delivery. I have already met with the Permanent Under-Secretary of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and the Secretary of State for Wales.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: The primary focus of the Welsh Government network of overseas offices is to identify and secure inward investment and export opportunities for Wales. They also support the promotion of a range of Welsh interests internationally in a number of areas, including education and culture.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: In 2019-20, the Welsh Government has allocated £603,000 to the National Eisteddfod through the Welsh language promotion grant scheme.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: The Welsh Government has a wide range of policies that derive from Cymraeg 2050. Some are directly implemented by the Welsh language division and others are mainstreamed through the work and policies of other Government departments.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: In January, I announced my intention to produce a new strategy outlining our international vision. We are still in the drafting stages and I expect to submit a draft to Cabinet in early May, with the final document ready for publication before the summer.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Well, thank you very much. May I start by welcoming the committee's report and thanking David Rees especially for all of the work undertaken and the evidence gathering that you have done during this inquiry, because it has provided us with some very valuable information as we develop our new strategy for Wales? I'm also grateful to everyone who's contributed to this afternoon's debate. May I...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: I think it's worth noting that participation in EU programmes and the associated agreement with the EU would normally be entered into by a sovereign state with the powers to do so, and we are already exploring whether it would be possible for Wales, or a combination of UK constituent countries, to participate in an EU programme like Erasmus, even if the UK Government were to disallow the...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: So, just in closing, I would like to thank the committee for their positive engagement and I hope that we can continue in this vein. I can assure you that many of the points that you've pointed out will be included in that international strategy. Diolch yn fawr.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Thank you very much. In 2016, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 2019 as the International Year for Indigenous Languages. We are all familiar with the UN’s practice of bringing important matters to global attention. I am therefore grateful for the opportunity to inform the Assembly of how the Welsh Government is marking the year in question. There are three objectives by the UN...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: It's worth remembering that Welsh is in a stronger position than many languages globally. It's a great concern that so many languages in the world are facing real challenges. Experts estimate that one language dies in the world every other week, and at that rate it is estimated that about half of the 7,000 or so languages in the world today are likely to disappear during the next 100 years....
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Thank you for those questions—a variety of questions, a great many questions—and thank you for all the research that you’ve done on this issue. Unfortunately, UNESCO hasn’t given us any funding; indeed, we have to contribute to the pot in order to be part of this. And what’s happened is that Wales Arts International has given £50,000 for us to be able to do some of the actions and...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Yes, I was going to say: Arfon or Arfor?
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Arfor, okay. Well, thank you very much. It’s very sad, I think there’s an opportunity here for us to take pride and for us to tell our story to the world, and what’s sad is that you have discussed here the problems that we have, and this is the opportunity that we have. There are so many things that we should be proud of, I think, and it’s very sad that, once again, what’s happened...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Well, thank you very much. I think some of the words that were said there were very welcome: the fact that there is a sensitivity towards indigenous languages, that there is an understanding of the fact that climate change is going to impact on places in the world and there will be pressures and that, actually, that is likely to lead to further movement. The problem is that many, many of the...
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: Thank you, Presiding Officer. I move the motion.
Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan: What we're discussing in this debate is a supplementary legislative consent memorandum on the Trade Bill, a Bill that will need to be in place to ensure that we can continue to trade with nations around the world following Brexit. The Bill, of course, is a UK Government Bill, but, as the UK Government is learning fast, when they negotiate trade deals in future—something that hasn't been...