Laying Documents in Welsh

Part of 3. Questions to the Assembly Commission – in the Senedd at 3:10 pm on 22 May 2019.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of David Lloyd David Lloyd Plaid Cymru 3:10, 22 May 2019

(Translated)

I thank the Commissioner for that response. The background to this question is that the Minister for health and his department had laid regulations placing duties in terms of the Welsh language on primary care service providers as well as an explanatory memorandum, and they were tabled in the Table Office on 9 May this year. The explanatory memorandum laid was monolingually available in English. This is staggering, in my view, particularly given the subject of the document. Members of the constitutional affairs committee shared my concerns about this and we will be writing to the Government to express those concerns. I've also received advice from the Welsh Language Commissioner, who more or less confirms that the Government is in breach of its standards in this case. If the Government doesn't think that it’s reasonable to ensure that we as Members representing the public should be able to see a document of this kind in Welsh, what further steps can the Commission take to ensure that it isn't possible for the Government to act counter to the spirit of the official languages Act and to its own Welsh language standards in laying business before this Assembly?