Thank you, Llywydd, and I speak to this motion in the name of Plaid Cymru. Now, the intention, of course, in bringing this debate forward this afternoon is not to question the Welsh Government’s commitment to this target of a million Welsh speakers by 2050, nor is it to doubt the consensus that I’m sure exists in this Assembly to work towards that particular target. But, one of the aims of tabling this debate in the Assembly this afternoon was to highlight or, perhaps, underline the enormity of the efforts required in order to double the number of Welsh speakers in just 30 years. It is an increase the likes of which hasn’t been seen in the history of the Welsh language, and an increase, therefore, that will be extremely challenging for us all, whether we be Welsh speakers or non-Welsh speakers. It’s a journey that will insist that we work in a way that is certainly creative and very determined, and, above all else, I suppose, that we are courageous in our approach. If the Government shows those characteristics in working towards this target of a million Welsh speakers over the next few years, then we on these benches will certainly be content to join you on that journey.

Now, the recent consultation on the Welsh Government’s draft strategy for a million Welsh speakers by 2050 does include a number of positive statements about that target and how it can be achieved. One of the central aspects of the strategy, of course, and the key factor in my view, and the other reason for this debate, of course, is the acknowledgment of the important role that education has to play in that effort. As the draft strategy states,

‘We need to see a significant increase in the number of people receiving Welsh-medium education and who have Welsh language skills, as it is only through enabling more people to learn Welsh that we will reach a million speakers.’

Now, the current system doesn’t promote and support Welsh-medium education sufficiently to reach that Government target of a million Welsh speakers by 2050. The statistics demonstrate that there has been a decline in the percentage of seven-year-old learners being taught through the medium of Welsh between 2013 and 2014, and no change between 2014 and 2015—22.2 per cent is the latest figure. There was an increase in the absolute number of children, but a decline in the percentage, and the truth is that the figure has stagnated for a number of years, varying from somewhere below 22 per cent in 2010 to a little over 22 per cent today.

Now, I’m no statistician, but if we are to double the number of Welsh speakers, then one would expect that we would need to double the number of those choosing Welsh-medium education, for example. If we can increase the number of year 2 pupils, which is the cohort of seven-year-olds assessed as first-language Welsh speakers, from 22 per cent to, let’s say, 50 per cent, then that would represent an additional 10,000 children, based on the 2015 figures. It would mean providing over 300 Welsh-medium classes across Wales for children at seven years of age.

That is the scale of the challenge we’re facing and the scale of the effort required. And, of course, you could multiply that, then, across the early years, primary education, secondary education, further education, higher education, lifelong learning, and so on. The early years are crucially important, because the earlier a child comes into contact with the language, the greater his or her chance is of becoming a fluent speaker. Those aren’t my words, but the words of the Government in its draft strategy, and, naturally, I agree with that. Unfortunately, of course, the level of language transference between children and their parents is relatively low. In 2015 only 6.5 per cent of five-year-olds spoke Welsh fluently at home, and that was down from 7 per cent in 2012. We are reliant, therefore, on the care and early years education system to ensure that children begin that journey of becoming of becoming bilingual, given that that doesn’t happen naturally in the home. If you get them early for the Welsh language, the likelihood that they will actually be able to speak the language and use the language is far, far greater. Now, 86 per cent of children attending Welsh-medium ‘cylchoedd meithrin’ will transfer to Welsh-medium primary schools, and the majority of those who don’t do that don’t do so because the Welsh-medium provision isn’t available to them very often.

Now, there is then a glorious opportunity, therefore, in light of the Government’s agreement with Plaid Cymru on enhancing childcare as a means of achieving much of what we want to see happening. And I said yesterday, in response to a statement by the Cabinet Secretary on that policy, and, indeed, in light of evidence that he provided to the committee last week, where he said that he would want to ensure that this policy responds to demand—I said, of course, that we need to move away from that attitude. Introducing that target of 1 million Welsh speakers has to be a statement that the days of just responding to demand are long gone. That’s the approach of the past, being reactive in this context. All the Government, education authorities and everyone else’s thinking has to change significantly to be a proactive one from here on in, and generate that demand through promoting, encouraging, and creating the provision and infrastructure to correspond, then, of course, to that. As Cymdeithas yr Iaith said, it would take more than 800 years for each child to receive Welsh-medium education if the current pattern of growth continued. And I’m certainly not going to settle for that.

Now, ensuring appropriate action for Welsh-medium education and training, of course, is crucially important for the success of the strategy—something that’s recognised by the Government, when they state that that, of course, means planning in order to support student teachers and classroom assistance, enhance sabbatical schemes for the current workforce, and significantly increasing the number of workers in the childcare and early years sector. The Government, of course, are announcing their 10-year plan for the early years workforce and childcare in the spring. Of all the plans brought forward by this Government that can influence the future of the Welsh language, this, in my view, is one of the most crucial. And this, to all intents and purposes, in my view, will be a test of how serious the Government is in terms of achieving their target of 1 million Welsh speakers.