4. Statement by the Minister for Welsh Language and Lifelong Learning: The Welsh-language Technology Action Plan

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:36 pm on 23 October 2018.

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Photo of Suzy Davies Suzy Davies Conservative 3:36, 23 October 2018

(Translated)

Thank you for the statement. I was just using the technology now to see what the Welsh word for ‘spoilt’ is, because, as Assembly Members, we are spoilt with the services that are available to us here and how we can take full advantage of them to help us in our work and to work in both languages during our business hours.

When I saw the title of the statement, I had thought that the Government was going to try to avoid the somewhat embarrassing fact that there has been a reduction in the number of Welsh teachers. So, I wasn’t looking forward to a future where that gap was going to be filled by working through digital means, rather than using teachers. So, I was pleased to see that we were discussing an entirely different area.

Now, I accept your analysis that technology stretches into our daily lives, and I think it’s a good place to introduce the Welsh language to people, both visually and in an open manner, as well as allowing Welsh speakers to live their lives through the medium of Welsh—it’s easy to press the 'language' button on an ATM machine, for example. But I’m sure we’re talking about something far more complex and ambitious than that.

So, I have quickly looked at the plan itself; the link arrived this lunchtime, so I haven’t had an opportunity to look at it in detail yet. But I saw no closing date for a progress assessment, and I don’t know what that period for assessment will be, so, it’s difficult for us as opposition Members to scrutinise your ideas. So, if you could help us with some sort of time frame, then that would help us to carry out our duties. Could you share with us your analysis of the innovation programmes that are currently being developed—here in Wales, hopefully, but also abroad? If there is any information you could provide on that, that would be excellent.

You talk about leadership and funding. This Government is constantly complaining about a shortage of funds, so how can you persuade the Cabinet Secretary for Finance that this should be a priority for funding? And, just to close, how will you prioritise sectors or activities, or whatever, in order to benefit from this plan in the most effective way possible, and to make sure that it’s prominent too, because we need see those who benefit from this plan? They need to be in our faces, in a way—we don’t want to be hiding these successes, and we need to ensure that it's apparent to everybody. Thank you.