We now move on to item 6, which is the Welsh Language Standards (No. 6) Regulations 2017. I call on the Minister for Lifelong Learning and Welsh Language to move the motion—Alun Davies.

Motion NDM6219 Jane Hutt

To propose that the National Assembly for Wales; in accordance with Standing Order 27.5:

Approves that the draft The Welsh Language Standards (No.6) Regulations 2017 is made in accordance with the draft laid in the Table Office on 15 December 2016.

Motion moved.

Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer. It’s my pleasure today to present these regulations to the Chamber. I ask Members this afternoon to pass these regulations. Some Members, of course, will recall that we had this debate on the very last day of the Assembly that concluded last year. Members will also know that these regulations were rejected by the Assembly at that time. I do hope that Members will appreciate the fact that I have taken some time to read the record of the debate that we had on that afternoon, and I have taken time to read the contributions of Aled Roberts, Simon Thomas and Suzy Davies. I’ve read what the contributions were at that time, and I very much hope that these regulations will respond to that debate and to the vote taken last year.

I would not be content, and the Government wouldn’t be presenting these regulations today, unless we were confident that we had responded to the concerns of Assembly Members as they were expressed in March and prior to that, and after the vote. Since then, I have tried to have discussions with Members and various organisations to understand why the regulations were rejected, and I have amended the regulations as a result of these discussions.

The changes that we have made respond to the points raised by Members, and I hope that the amendments reflect the views of the Assembly as they were expressed then and the views of the Assembly today. The changes I have made are as follows: we have given students the right to express a wish to have Welsh-medium accommodation; we have created a right to have signs in the buildings of universities and colleges in Welsh; we’ve created a right to a Welsh language intranet; we have added arts centres to the standards; and we are ensuring that students will have a right to a personal tutor who is able to communicate in Welsh.

The final point is that I would thank Sian Gwenllian and Plaid Cymru for the debate that we had on this issue. I welcome the contribution that Plaid Cymru has made, and I thank Sian Gwenllian for her contribution during these discussions. Members will be aware that these regulations were discussed by the Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee some weeks ago. As a result of the amendments that we have made, and on the basis of the fact that there have been broad-ranging discussions on these regulations, I ask Members today to agree the regulations as amended.

Of course, I do commit to amend the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 during this Assembly in order to ensure that the system of imposing standards is less bureaucratic. I am eager to start gathering evidence, and we will begin that process by engaging with partners prior to the publication of a White Paper. We will consult very broadly over the summer months. Consultation and legislation take time. I am eager that we should commence the process as soon as possible.

I very much hope that I have responded to the debate held here, and I very much hope that I’ve responded to the concerns that we have heard expressed about these regulations. On that basis, I propose that Members do agree these regulations this afternoon. Thank you.

Diolch. I call on the Chair of the Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee, Bethan Jenkins.

Thank you. Having received concerns from stakeholders, and taking into account the fact that the Assembly rejected the Welsh Language Standards (No. 3) Regulations, the Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee agreed that it should consider the regulations under Standing Order 27.8 and report our conclusions to the Assembly.

After the regulations were laid, we wrote to Cymdeithas yr Iaith and to student unions in Wales, who had raised a number of concerns about the previous No.3 regulations prior to the Assembly’s rejection of them in March this year. As they’ve had a chance to see them, we asked them to detail any concerns they may have about the new regulations. The National Union of Students Wales and Cymdeithas yr Iaith responded, and their written observations are annexed to the report. I have to emphasise on the record today that written evidence is just as robust as oral evidence.

Subsequently, the committee took oral evidence on 18 January from Fflur Elin, the president of NUS Wales, and from Dafydd Trystan, the registrar of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol. The ‘coleg’ works with universities across Wales to develop Welsh-medium opportunities for students. The committee also took oral evidence at the meeting from the Minister for Lifelong Learning and Welsh Language. In addition, Colleges Wales, a charity that aims to improve further education opportunities, also submitted comments. Unfortunately, due to timing of their submission, the committee was unable to consider these, although they are also annexed to the report.

Much of the written evidence we received concerned the general process for making the regulations and the nature of the standards regime established by the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011. It is fair to say that the committee, without coming to a specific view on the matter, shares some of those concerns. The regulations we have before us certainly appear to be a cumbersome and bureaucratic way of trying to enshrine rights to use and receive services through the medium of Welsh.

However, whatever our concerns about the wider process for making and approving standards regulations, and the nature of those regulations, our consideration was concerned—as is this debate today—with the much narrower point of whether this particular set of regulations should be approved.

Having said that, the committee has noted the Minister’s intention to review the primary legislation under which the standards are made, namely the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011. In our view, that is the appropriate point at which to consider wider issues of process and principle, and I am sure that the committee will wish to engage positively with the Minister in any review that’s undertaken.

As to the regulations before us, it is clear that they are far from perfect, and all those who gave evidence to us acknowledged weaknesses in the regulations. In particular, I want to draw attention to the concerns expressed by NUS Wales about issues surrounding the definition of student welfare and the provision of accommodation.

However, all of the evidence that we received indicated that these regulations, for all their flaws, do address most of the main concerns raised by student organisations and by Members during the plenary debate in relation to the regulations that were rejected in March last year. Therefore, even though they’re imperfect, they’re better than the rejected regulations. We were also pleased to note the Minister’s assurances to keep the operation of the regulations under review and to bring forward amending regulations if it becomes clear that these are not working in practice as intended. Subject to these assurances, the committee recommends that the Assembly approves the regulations. Thank you very much.

We as Plaid Cymru do support these amended regulations. You mention that they were rejected by the fourth Assembly. I wasn’t here personally at that time, but they were weak, and a number of concerns were raised by student representatives and by Plaid Cymru at that point. There was some further delay prior to Christmas—just a week, I hasten to say—at the request of Plaid Cymru once we’d seen the draft regulations at that point. I’d like to thank the Cabinet Secretary for that opportunity to express a view, and I am pleased to see that he did listen and that many of the concerns that we raised have now been addressed.

The amended regulations do include a number of rights for Welsh students: the right to express a desire to have Welsh language accommodation; to use the student intranet through the medium of Welsh; the right to the allocation of a personal tutor who is a Welsh speaker; the right to see the Welsh language on all signs in HE and FE colleges in Wales; and to use the Welsh language at arts centres. In looking at one of these—the right to a Welsh-speaking personal tutor—I think this is crucial to the success of a Welsh-speaking student in institutions that can often be quite alien places for young people when they arrive there first. Having a consistent relationship through the medium of Welsh with a member of staff is sure to enhance the student experience and will, therefore, lead to enhanced academic attainment.

The standards are, therefore, a step forward—there’s no doubt about that—although there are some gaps that remain. As I said, we will be supporting them today, but I would endorse the call of the Welsh language committee in doing that. I thank the committee for its detailed scrutiny work in contributing to where we are today. We endorse the committee’s demand that we should keep a very close eye on the implementation of these standards, and that they should be reviewed again to deal with any gaps that emerge.

We will also need workforce planning within institutions in order to deliver these regulations, and that, in turn, will contribute towards the million Welsh speakers strategy in due course.

I’ve also looked at what Colleges Wales had to say in their evidence and support what they had to say, namely that the regulations must go hand in hand with plans to expand Welsh-medium education in our education institutions, because without having the educational content available through the medium of Welsh, much of this is simply superficial. In bringing the two together, particularly terms of FE, we do now need to see progress in including far more Welsh-medium courses in FE and, perhaps, bring that sector under the auspices of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol, too. But, there’s no doubt that these regulations will make it easier for students to live their lives through the medium of Welsh while studying, having left school, in the years to come.

Thank you. I call on the Minister to reply to the debate—Minister.

Thank you very much. I’m very grateful to Sian and Bethan for the comments that they’ve made. I haven’t had an opportunity to read all of the evidence that the committee has received on the standards in its entirety, and the general comments about the system that we have, but I would welcome an opportunity to discuss with the committee Chair, if that’s possible, the way in which she would like us to consider the way in which we reform the current system and process. I haven’t seen it, but I am sure that I will agree with a lot of what has been said in evidence. I do agree with her comments this afternoon—damned with faint praise. I do agree with what she said when it comes to the system, and I’m very eager to play a role in changing the system for the future so that we don’t go through this again.

At the same time, I agree with the comments made by Sian Gwenllian on expanding the place of the Welsh language in the educational world. That’s what we want to do, while the students are in the classroom, are in the lecture room and are also outside the classroom: allowing students to live their lives through the medium of Welsh and to receive their education through the medium of Welsh, and then to socialise and live through the medium of Welsh as well. That’s our objective and our vision. I agree that it’s difficult to say that any set of standards or set of legislation is going to be perfect. We have to consider how these are implemented, and that is going to be very important. I do agree with the comments that we need to monitor how they’re implemented. I will do that, but I do hope that we can move ahead now and have a richer conversation about how we implement this policy, how we implement this legislation and how we legislate for the future, and legislate for a bilingual nation. Thank you very much.

The proposal is to agree the motion. Does any Member object? No. Therefore, the motion is agreed in accordance with Standing Order 12.36.

Motion agreed in accordance with Standing Order 12.36.