Can we be clear from the outset? The proposals of the Labour Government are going to weaken our rights. Abolishing the role of the commissioner is going to weaken our rights. Going back to one body and expecting that to carry out two entirely different functions is weakening our rights. Putting the power in the hands of the Government instead of the Assembly in terms of determining who should fall under that language duties and when—that weakens our rights. Abolishing the current list that ensures that the Assembly has the right to impose language duties on some private companies does weaken our rights as Welsh speakers. Abolishing the right of the public to complain to the Welsh Language Commissioner does weaken our rights as Welsh speakers. Saying that only serious complaints will be investigated—there’s no definition of what a serious complaint actually constitutes—that, again, restricts our rights as Welsh speakers. Plaid Cymru is against any weakening, any restriction, on our rights.

In terms of promotion, Plaid Cymru believes that we need an independent body to do this important work, leaving the commissioner to focus on the work of setting standards and regulation. Establishing a commission that would be trying to do all the work that was necessary would be a backwards step, and that’s why we’ve argued consistently for having an arm’s-length agency to promote and to facilitate and to plan strategically for the Welsh language on the basis of robust linguistic principles.

We need to strengthen our rights, and that brings us to the private sector. There are several examples of why we need to extend these standards to the private sector, and they’ve been highlighted over the last few months: the Sports Direct saga, when Welsh speakers’ rights were restricted in the workplace; and Santander and Lloyds Bank refusing to accept papers in the Welsh language and so forth. I’d like to thank the Minister for his swift response to those cases. But I do note that the White Paper says this:

‘We are not proposing that the Welsh Government will imminently be imposingStandards on bodies which do not currently come within the Standards system.’

Namely the majority of the private sector. Unfortunately, history shows that depending on persuasion of bodies to protect Welsh language rights doesn’t work. We need to legislate and we need to extend the legislation to the private sector. But that’s not in White Paper, although I do note that you this afternoon have said that you’re in favour of our amendment 7, and I do welcome that greatly.

We need you to act—that’s the main issue. You need to act. We need to move forward with imposing these standards on the health bodies, and I do welcome the fact that you say at last, after nearly two years—over two years, to tell you the truth—that the Government will move on this. Patients have the right to discuss their problems through the medium of Welsh. And the report on standards for the housing associations has been on your desk for two years, and the water companies for nearly two years. Buses and trains and railways—nearly two years. There’s a lot of work to be done and we’re just starting. Now is the time to act, and maybe now is not the time to be discussing this kind of White Paper. What about moving forward with the work? What about starting to act?

In the background, of course, is your 1 million speakers strategy. Shouldn’t the Government be focusing on the work that’s needed to launch that million Welsh speakers strategy, rather than having an unnecessary debate about a piece of legislation that’s going to take time to bed in and standards that need to be imposed and implemented?