5. What recent discussions has the Minister had with the Minister for Education regarding the provision of university courses through the medium of Welsh? OAQ53903

I have regular meetings with the Minister for Education where we discuss issues relating to Welsh-medium education. Ensuring the provision of Welsh-medium courses within universities is a key priority for the Welsh Government, and the role of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol is, of course, vital in securing this aim.

I'm grateful to the Minister for her answer, and I'd associate myself with what she says about the role of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol. It's beginning to deliver a transformation. However, I have had brought to my notice by an individual constituent—and I won't even mention the university concerned because this young person is concerned about being exposed—that when she raised the possibility of undertaking part of a course through the medium of Welsh, she was met with a really unhelpful and dismissive attitude, and it was perfectly possible for her to do that because there was a tutor available who could have delivered part of that course. This reflects a concern that has been raised with me by others that there are some parts of our universities that are still culturally resistant to this and that they don't see the provision of courses through the medium of Welsh, particularly perhaps in non-traditional subjects, as something that's for them. What further steps can the Minister take, working with the Minister for Education and obviously with the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol but also with the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales to help challenge the remains of this negative and, I think, now very much a minority culture within some of our universities and to emphasise that there is nothing for a university to lose and everything for it to gain by making this provision available?

Thank you. I think you're absolutely right that there has been a transformation as a result of the establishment of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol, but it's still fairly new, and so that cultural embeddedness really still needs to deliver. It is delivering very significantly in terms of modules in certain specific subjects, but you're right that there are pockets where that is proving more difficult than others. What we will continue to do, of course, is to work through the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol, which receives a significant sum of money, because, actually, this is not just about the courses they do; it's about their opportunity to live and work and speak in Welsh. And what we have found is that there is this huge drop-off that comes the moment people leave their Welsh-language schools. So, unless we provide that opportunity to continue, even if it's just on a modular basis, which the Member recognises—we're not talking about complete courses here—. I think that has to be a step that we keep progressing, but I will undertake to discuss that further with the education Minister.

Students from the age of three to 18 are taught through the medium of Welsh. They learn all the technical words through the medium of Welsh and therefore they don't know the technical words in English. It's not that they can't speak English, but the technical words are words that are specific to the subjects—they only know the Welsh versions of them. Will you work with the education Minister and Welsh universities to produce a road map to increase the number of subjects available in Welsh universities through the medium of Welsh, especially in those very popular subjects that every university runs?

Already there has been a huge increase, so we're up to about 6,800 students now who are already studying part of their degree through the medium of Welsh. Of course, what we've done is to enhance the offer beyond higher education now; it's going into further education, which I think is essential. But what's important also—. I think there is a debate to be had in terms of the technical language and making sure that people understand and have a bilingual understanding of the technical terms. I think that is a discussion that does need to be had, particularly if people, of course, are going on to study in non-Welsh universities, so they will need to be equipped with that. But what is important, I think, is that we continue down this path that the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol has been delivering, but let's have a look now at how they can deliver in the further education sector.