Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: The themed years to date have delivered many positive results including £350 million additional spend through marketing. We will measure the Year of Discovery’s impact by continually monitoring our own marketing, evaluating the impact of partner-funded activity, and through ongoing industry feedback and surveys.
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Constructive discussions are ongoing between Welsh Government officials, the National Library of Wales, and BBC Cymru Wales regarding the national broadcast archive to ensure the viability and long term sustainability of the archive from 2024, when it will no longer be supported by external grant funding.
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: May I first of all answer the last part of the question? There has been no application for additional financial support made to the Welsh Government this year from the WRU. We have contributed the usual sum to the union, which is £880,000—I apologise, £853,000 this year. We have also contributed towards Conwy County Borough Council, where I happen to reside—I should perhaps declare an...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Ofcom does have a Welsh representative on its central board. Ofcom also has a consultative committee representing Wales. I do hope that these issues will be discussed in the appropriate manner within those structures. As it happens, I have one of my regular meetings with Ofcom taking place over the next fortnight and I will certainly be listening in order to learn in more detail how Ofcom in...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Well, no, because I think it's very important in this area that we look not only at broadcasting but at all the digital communications media. What's important for me is that the Welsh language and the English language in Wales appear on as many mediums as possible, and that includes social media and through the screens that people so regularly use. We shouldn't only be looking at...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Thank you very much. You will have heard me replying succinctly, briefly, about our relationship in response to an earlier question, so I can confirm that I have had regular meetings with the Welsh Rugby Union and, indeed, have discussed with them their development plans and their business model, including regional restructuring. However, I would emphasise that it is not my intention in...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: No, those were very much personal thoughts. Also, it's an obvious personal thought of mine that I would like to see professional rugby in the north of Wales, and have wished to see that happen for many years. I'm now having to be at arm's length from myself and that particular view, but that will be no surprise to you. But what I would say is that there has been no discussion, but there has...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Thank you very much for expressing that so forcefully, David. Certainly, it is our intention as a Government to ensure that any programmes that involve community engagement, any programme that develops women's rugby, under 20 rugby, youth rugby—all those commitments are commitments that have been made to us by the WRU, centrally, and it is the WRU, therefore, that is responsible at the...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Thank you, again, for that forceful expression. I made the comparison with Ireland precisely for the reasons you've been pursuing in that discussion. We need to have a serious look about what structure is required to make rugby in Wales, at whatever level—at the community level, at the youth level, at the women's level, which I obviously strongly encourage, but also at the international...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Thank you very much for that. I can confirm that the official who has been acting on my behalf in this area clearly understands the economic implications, because the head of sport is also involved in regional development—not exactly in the same area, but in south Wales. So, I will re-emphasise in further discussions, both with other officials in Government, and with him, and in my...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer.
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: May I say one thing about this process, because this is the first time I’ve had the privilege of responding to a short debate and, indeed, to participate in a short debate? When we were putting in place the Standing Orders of this place, many years ago, we did believe that the short debate was a very important thing, because it isn’t a debate, in essence, but an opportunity for a Member...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: One could argue that the Romans are chiefly responsible for this crucial structure, as I understand things at least, because of the land reclaimed from the seas with fields, some of which are used to this day. And every time the sea would flood the area then there was an attempt to recolonise that area, and we've heard about much of this already, and that certainly happened in the eleventh...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Visit Wales runs high-impact, integrated marketing campaigns featuring north Wales and its product strengths, e.g. north Wales figures prominently in this week’s St David’s Day and Wales Week activity. There is also, via competitive application, financial support given to partners to collaborate on projects to create their own promotional campaigns.
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer. This has been a debate that is beneficial for the Assembly as a whole, because it demonstrates that we can discuss a motion that has been signed by Members of all parties, and there will also be a free vote on the motion, with the exception, of course, that members of the Government will abstain—not because we disagree necessarily with anything...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Amgueddfa Cymru, the National Museum, opens its doors freely at its seven sites throughout Wales. It leads the sector in reaching out and engaging with socially diverse audiences across Wales, and I am fully aware, having been schooled by Professor Gwyn Alf Williams, that everything of value in the industrial revolution and radical politics in Wales began in Merthyr. [Laughter.]
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Well, the answer to that must be 'yes'. I'm always encouraging the national museums and galleries to ensure that all aspects of the national collection that can be displayed across the country are displayed in that way. We have centres such as Oriel y Parc in St Davids, or some of the libraries—most recently I was at Haverfordwest opening a new library where there's a special relationship...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: I'm very grateful to you for your support on our activity. I have a particular interest, of course, because of my own background and my own practice, in the history of all faith communities and particularly the role of the Jewish community in the development of Wales, the development of business and capitalism and investment within Wales, especially in key periods of the industrial...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Thank you very much for the question, and, indeed, I am a Glamorgan supporter, since I was first taken to St Helen's, not quite understanding what was going on there, about five years old at the time. What I will do is I will undertake to have a meeting with Cricket Wales and a discussion with the Glamorgan cricket club, and I will have an opportunity to do that fairly soon as the season is...
Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas: Well, I hope it can. Obviously, it's a matter of timescale, but, again, I will ensure that, in my future discussions with Cricket Wales this season, I will ask them for a clearer indication of the likely implementation of such a target. As far as I'm concerned, it's always important to increase the spread of interest in sport. We have our major sports, which are no longer limited to the...
