Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:25 pm on 11 July 2017.
I think that we do have to invest in the economy of areas where the Welsh language is the community language, but what I don’t want to do is create a Gaeltacht, as it were—create a community or region where it is established that that is the area where it’s spoken. As I mentioned in response to the Member for Neath with regard to promoting the Welsh language in the Valleys, we need to ensure that the Welsh language belongs to all communities in our nation. I do acknowledge that we do have to invest, and I said in response to Sian Gwenllian that we do have to ensure that the Government is responsible to the communities where Welsh is the community language, and to ensure the economic future of those communities. That’s something I’m working on with the Cabinet Secretary for the economy, and, when he makes his statement on the regional economic policy, there will be an integral part for the Welsh language.