Item 4 on the agenda this afternoon is a statement by the Minister for International Relations and Welsh Language: Cymraeg 2050 Annual Report 2018-19. I call on the Minister for International Relations and Welsh Language—Eluned Morgan.

The Llywydd took the Chair.

Thank you very much.

It's a pleasure to present our report on the journey to a million Welsh speakers. We've been busy. As I say in the foreword to the annual report, it can feel like a lot of time has passed since we launched Cymraeg 2050, because it really has caught the imagination of people across Wales and beyond.

But, remember that only two years have passed since it was published, and that we're still in the early days. This is a period of laying the foundations but, despite that, you'll see signs of progress in relation to the early years, more Welsh-medium provision, and more people learning Welsh as adults, whether through the National Centre for Learning Welsh, or other means.

But, big changes call for taking big steps, and our work across a number of areas is making a difference. What we have in this report is a snapshot of a period in time—between April 2018 and March 2019. But, we have continued with the work and we've achieved a lot beyond the period in question. For instance, we've introduced regulations that, for the first time, set targets for every county in relation to their contribution to increasing Welsh-medium education, and the Welsh in Education Strategic Plans (Wales) Regulations 2019 came into force on 1 January this year.

Increasing the number of teachers who are able to teach our children through the medium of Welsh is something we take seriously. In November, we conducted the first annual census of the school workforce to learn more about teachers' Welsh language skills across Wales. This supports programmes that already exist, such as initial teacher training and education programmes; the financial incentive, Iaith Athrawon Yfory; the Welsh language sabbatical scheme; work with the regional consortia; and the e-sgol project, which will support the availability of subjects and fair choice.

Making sure that pupils move with the Welsh language from one period of education to the next is also important. We've also agreed to allocate £145,000 in 2019-20 to encourage more learners to follow Welsh at A-level and at university.

In relation to increasing use of the language, last year, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Welsh Government and the Welsh Language Commissioner. All of the work being done by our grant partners in our communities continues to give opportunities to people of all abilities to use Welsh. And the Welsh Government is developing an internal strategy to become a bilingual organisation by 2050. And in terms of infrastructure, we all know how important a solid technological foundation is in any language, and we've been taking steps under the Welsh language technology action plan, launched in October 2018.

From reading the report you'll see that its scope is very broad, and touches on portfolios across the Government. Donning my cap as Minister for international relations, I'm always looking for exciting opportunities for joint working between the Welsh language and international portfolios. You'll have heard about our work celebrating the UNESCO Year of Indigenous Languages last year, and the superb conference Gŵyl Ein Llais yn y Byd, the Our Voice in the World Festival, was held in November in Aberystwyth.

I want Wales to be seen leading on language planning, thus building on the reputation we already have internationally, and why we're setting up Prosiect 2050. And there’s a lot of collaboration between Wales and other countries that promote languages. We are members of the European network to promote linguistic diversity, and lead the British-Irish Council languages group.

By travelling abroad and seeing what we're doing in Wales through other people's eyes, it becomes evident that we have a tendency in general to think negatively about what we're doing here in relation to the Welsh language. There is a tendency amongst some people to speak of 'protecting' and 'loss' and the 'death' of the language, rather than 'celebrating' and 'growing' and 'planning'. I do think that it's important that we raise our sight and our aspirations.

But what I've seen from speaking to others is that Wales and the Welsh language are an inspiration to the speakers of other languages, and that they continue to learn about our plans for acquiring Welsh and promoting its use. Of course, we also have lessons to learn from Ireland and Scotland and the Basque Country as we consider how we convey ourselves to our fellow Welsh people and the world at large.

The story of the Welsh language can so easily be one of fun, positivity, unity and support, where we work together to reach a million speakers. Look at how members of our international women's football team are learning Welsh together and sharing their journey on social media as an example of that. And I'm looking forward to seeing the language taking a prominent place once again at the Euros next summer, just as it was in 2016.

There’s no doubt that we can do more to create favourable conditions to encourage people to use Welsh. Research conducted a few years ago suggested that some people said they weren't very confident in their Welsh and were afraid of being criticised—even though they hadn't, perhaps, had that experience themselves. So there's something holding them back, and that's disappointing to me. Welsh is a language for everyone in Wales, and sometimes, we have to take a look at ourselves, and make every effort to break down any barriers that prevent people from taking part. We need to turn 'them' into 'us'

We are developing our understanding of people’s behaviour in relation to language, of the types of messages that motivate people and make it easier for them to use Welsh—socially, in the family, the school community or the workplace. Reaching a million speakers will mean creating new speakers. And we have a good track record in Wales of welcoming people to Welsh. Our immersion centres for latecomers to Welsh-medium education have broken new ground and are a national treasure. And if we go back to the last time we had about a million Welsh speakers, at the start of the twentieth century, our communities played an important role in integrating people who moved to Wales. A number of them became keen advocates for the language. And that’s an important message for us to remember as we think of how we speak about Welsh. 

I want to put Wales and the Welsh language on the map as being modern, welcoming and vibrant. Our bilingualism can be a genuine advantage economically. We have a bilingual workforce, a unique culture and a story to tell. That’s why I'm presenting this annual report to you and why I'm proud of what we've achieved. And I want to pay tribute as well to the Minister who was my predecessor who was partly responsible for this period. We're not just proud about this reporting period, but since then, as well as our plans for the future. Young people—all of us, truth be told—identify with success, with hope for a bright future, and we have to show them that the Welsh language is one of those success stories.

As the aim of 1 million Welsh speakers is supported across the board, or almost across the board, I'm more than happy to recognise the work that’s been done by the Government and the work that you've mentioned in your statement today. I would like to say a few words, because I was particularly pleased to see what’s written in the report itself on Wales beyond our borders. I don't know if you have time to tell us a little more about that, and also TAN 20, because I'm not sure where that planning authorities are all open to this idea of seeing this as an opportunity for the language, particularly in terms of education, rather than seeing it in negative terms. As with all strategies, of course, you need carrots and sticks, but it’s difficult, and perhaps impossible, in my view, to force people to accept help or to use the Welsh language in their daily lives. I would like to know a little more about the carrots that you're considering implementing before the next report.

I welcome the work that’s been done in early years education, particularly through apprenticeships. Could I ask you how difficult it is to find employers who can offer Welsh language apprenticeships in other areas, specifically in the private sector? I'm thinking about hospitality and retail particularly, those are front-facing jobs and have a prominent role in terms of the prominence of the Welsh language on our streets and in our daily lives. I don’t think standards are the solution to this challenge, but it is withe considering what kind of carrot would be most appropriate.

Perhaps I could also ask about the elements of the Welsh language included in apprenticeships or school or college courses that are provided through the medium of English, because I know that there are certain elements provided in Welsh, but I don't know too much about them. And what's the standard? Are they robust as part of those courses?

In terms of the numbers of teachers, despite the steps that you've mentioned in your statement, it is clear that there is still a problem in persuading young people to seek training, not just in Welsh, but to actually study Welsh as a subject. So, why do you think that that persists as a problem and what have you been discussing with the Education Workforce Council and Qualifications Wales as to how the teaching of Welsh will look in the secondary sector, particularly in the future and particularly in light of the introduction of the new curriculum, because those changes are going to be crucial? I’d also like to know how this is to be provided to young people who are educated other than at school—the EOTAS—and how they can engage with what’s available in terms of increasing the use of the Welsh language.

Now, in terms of Welsh in the workplace, I’ve raised this in the past, and you have responded with some details about the helpline and individuals working with both large and small companies, and, course, with Welsh for adults where the main focus is still on the public sector. I understand why, of course, because standards do require this, but are you yet in a position to share some of the qualitative outcomes of some of these programmes, not just the number of people who become immersed in them, but how many people have seen their Welsh language improve, or how many people use the language with more confidence or use it more often as a result of this?

I agree with you 100 per cent, I must say, Minister, on the points that you made about people who aren't confident in using the Welsh language. It’s a very personal issue in terms of language of choice, and you as Minister—. It sends a very strong message for you to say that not everyone has to be word perfect in their use of the Welsh language, but, of course, I'm not arguing that we should seek to undermine quality. But we do need to take into account that there is a large percentage of learners in formal education or those who come from Welsh-speaking backgrounds but who don't use the language very often, and we can't afford to lose them, because they are core to this strategy. I would like to hear a little more on that particular point.

And, finally, I welcome the targets in the WESPs now; I'm pleased to see them. But what would you do if councils were to fail in terms of their new targets? What’s it going to take for you to reconsider the need for new legislation in this area? And is there any chance that we will have legislation to assist us if the councils do fail in delivering those targets? I know there’s more to legislation than that, but thank you.

Thank you very much; there were many questions there.

First of all, may I say how encouraging it is that we are operating on a cross-party basis towards this target of 1 million Welsh speakers? I think that does give a very clear message within and outwith Wales, and this is a message that we're trying to share in Northern Ireland, for example, to show that there is a journey that you can follow as a nation on an issue that perhaps used to be sensitive, but that has become now something that is accepted by society in general.

I do think that there is an opportunity for us to talk about the Welsh language outside our borders, and I'm willing to talk more about that sometime, but just to give you an idea: recently I went to UNESCO to speak to them about how they can perhaps use us as a model of what we can do, what we have done, and in particular in areas such as technology. There was a great deal of interest from them in hearing more about that.

We have had a positive response, I think, with regard to the WESPs, and we've been collaborating very closely with local councils. I think what’s important is that we bring councils and their populations with us on this journey. This is something where I think it’s very difficult to try to force someone to take the Welsh language seriously as a subject and to take it as the way that they want Welsh to be taught full time in their schools. So, we need to convince people. We've done that, I think, but the WESPs and the fact that we have 10 years now to plan is a great help. So, I agree that it's about convincing people and not compelling them; that’s the best way of moving this forward.

There are many things that we can do in terms of use of the language. Certainly, there are different ways of using the carrot. One example of this was with capital funding that we used to try to encourage some authorities to go further with their plans. So, there was £30 million in addition that was directly allocated to those local authorities that were willing to open new Welsh-medium schools. So, there is a carrot there.

In terms of apprenticeships, around 12 per cent of apprenticeships and those involved in work in our communities and our colleges—around 12 per cent of those do include an element of the Welsh language. It’s true to say that having apprenticeships in the areas of care and childcare is perhaps much easier than in the private sector. So, I do think that there is further work to be done in some of those areas that you talked about with regard to hospitality and retail. And that’s why what we're trying to do is to raise awareness of language use through schemes such as Cymraeg Gwaith, so that people can see the advantages of using the Welsh language and then perhaps they'll take on an apprentice as part of their development.

In terms of teaching Welsh as a subject, well, this is something that we are trying to encourage people to do at A-level. You’ll see that we’ve allocated an additional £150,000 to try to encourage people in this area to go from GCSE to A-level and then onwards to university. English, also, is facing difficulties in this regard, so it’s not just an issue for the Welsh language.

In terms of use of the Welsh language, I have been urging groups such the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol to ensure that they do more in the social sphere. And things such as Dydd Miwsig Cymru, Welsh Language Music Day, is coming up and that’s an opportunity for people to ensure that there’s an opportunity to socialise through the medium of Welsh.

There is work to do on language transmission and we do have a scheme that we're preparing at the moment, and that will be coming out very soon. But we are aware that we need to see what those factors are that do encourage people to use the Welsh language—to switch from using the English language to using the Welsh language in those social spheres.

In terms of standards of Welsh, I do think it’s important that we do raise the confidence of people who speak Welsh and who make the effort to do so. We shouldn’t criticise or judge and it’s important that we should silence the language police. So, I do hope that that message has gone out clearly. Of course, we do need to have standards, but we do need to strike the balance.

Thank you for the statement. Now, throughout all of this, there is one particular question that constantly arises in my mind, and that is a question on funding: how can you reconcile the Government's current budget for the Welsh language for the next financial year with the ambition in the 'Cymraeg 2050' strategy? Although various Ministers have contradicted each other, as we understand it, this Government will spend less on the Welsh language in 2020-21 than it will do in the current financial year. I do understand that my colleague Llyr Gruffydd, the Chair of the Finance Committee, has written to you asking for clarity on this issue, but he's received no response to date. Our understanding, therefore, is that the settlement for the Welsh language budget is flat, is below inflation, and is less than the average increase in the budget more generally. 

This lack of funding is starting to emerge already, and I'm going to mention two examples that have been drawn to my attention. First of all, there will be cuts in the Welsh for adults budget. According to the information that I've received locally, I do understand that the centre for learning Welsh in Bangor will lose up to £100,000 next year. That's less money for Welsh for adults, and, therefore, fewer opportunities for adults to learn Welsh. Now, how on earth can you reconcile that with the 'Cymraeg 2050' strategy? Isn't increasing the number of adults learning Welsh core to the target of creating 1 million Welsh speakers?

Secondly, I'd like to take the opportunity to question you on the budget of the National Eisteddfod. From my understanding, there was an intention to allocate funding for the Ceredigion and the Llŷn eisteddfods so that the organisers could offer reduced-price tickets, which is a wonderful idea, and you will all recall that this happened very successfully in the Cardiff Eisteddfod, which was available free of charge. There was no charge for entry, and I think that in Llanrwst, you could enter the field free of charge on the Sunday. I think the original intention was to allow the Llŷn and Ceredigion Eisteddfods to put arrangements in place in order to reduce the price of tickets in order to reach out, to attract new people to the Eisteddfod and to increase people's confidence in the use of the Welsh language, as we've discussed here. So, will you confirm that that is no longer your intention and that the budget that had been originally put in place for the Eisteddfod is also subject to cuts? And how do you reconcile that u-turn with your desire to see more people using the Welsh language and making the Welsh language more accessible to more people? How does it accord with the 2050 strategy and the 1 million Welsh speakers vision?

And, finally, I would like to know whether the savings in these two areas that I've mentioned this afternoon—and perhaps there may be savings in other areas in relation to the Welsh language today—are these savings to be used for other priorities, and what are those other priorities that you're considering? Are those other priorities within the Welsh language portfolio or are they priorities that relate to your responsibilities in other parts of your portfolio—for example, the international strategy? We need clarity on all of this, please.

Two brief questions to conclude: there's an additional £14 million in 2020-1 for FE colleges. How much of that additional budget will be provided to Welsh-medium education? And then, as a result of additional funding for HE and apprenticeships next year, how much additional funding will the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol have in order to expand Welsh-medium education and apprenticeships? These are questions that we would like some clarity on this afternoon.

At the end of the day, it'll all come down to money. With the budget for the Welsh language shrinking, how are we to believe that your Government is truly serious about creating 1 million Welsh speakers, and how can we give proper attention to the report on the 2050 strategy, when we know that there are efforts in place to undermine the Welsh language budget?

Well, may I start by making it clear that there have been no cuts in the Welsh language budget? There will be no cut in the Welsh language budget. I don't know how many times I can state that. In addition to that, the £6.5 million that Plaid Cymru agreed to in the previous budget—we have maintained that funding, so that funding has gone towards the budget as well. In addition to that, I think it's important that we recognise that the budget I'm responsible for is only part of the Welsh language budget. There are portfolios across Government the touch on the Welsh language. If you just think about the fact that last year we spent £30 million in capital funding for building Welsh-medium schools, £15 million on building locations where young children could learn the Welsh language, additional millions went to Llangrannog and Glan-llyn—nobody ever mentions that additional funding that has gone towards the Welsh language. So, I do think that it is important to restate that.

I wanted to look at Welsh for adults in detail. They receive £13 million, and they teach around 12,000 people. I just want to have a look at that in greater detail, because it does take a great deal of the budget. I want to ensure that they spend the money in the right way, and I'm sure that you'd want me to do that. And it's worth, perhaps, just looking at the fact that it's not just them who provide for teaching adults in Welsh. Say Something in Welsh say that they teach 50,000 people. Duolingo says that they have a million people on their books, and they don't receive a penny from the Government. So, I do think it's important that we see this in the wider context. But, of course, the work that Welsh for adults does in the centre is very, very important.

But I haven't made any decision yet with regard to what we're going to do about that, because I do want to have a closer look at what we can do and ensure that it dovetails with our priorities for Cymraeg 2050. But I can be entirely clear with you that funding won't be lost from the portfolio. If funding is moved around, it will be allocated somewhere else within the Welsh language portfolio.

There's no u-turn being made on the Eisteddfod. The situation remains the same as it was in the past, so I don't know where that has come from.

In terms of the coleg Cymraeg, there are apprenticeships, as I said—around 12 per cent of people do an element of their work in the apprenticeships through the medium of Welsh, and it's important that we increase the opportunities for people to do that so that they study more of their course through the medium of Welsh in future.

Minister, I think, to state the obvious, really, there are particular challenges in different parts of Wales in terms of promoting and growing the Welsh language. In Newport, there was, for a long time, a historical nonsense around in terms of Monmouthshire not being part of Wales or England but being in some strange hybrid position. Thankfully, things have moved on since those days, and I think there's a much stronger sense of Welsh identity in Newport now. And, indeed, many people very much lament what they see as the opportunities they should have had but didn't have to learn Welsh and be able to use the Welsh language. Thankfully for younger people now, things are so much better through the growth of Welsh-medium education. And there are other positive aspects as well, even quite basic, simple things such as bilingual signage, bilingual announcements, and, indeed, some adult groups now meeting in cafes and other places where you hear Welsh spoken in the community. But it is still fairly limited, I think, it's fair to say.

So, I'd be interested just to hear how Welsh Government might continue that progress, further strengthening the language in not just Newport but similar areas across Wales. As I say, they do obviously present particular challenges, given the low base level of the language. It would be great to hear Welsh spoken more commonly, more often in the community in Newport, and I think those limited adult groups show that there's probably a need for greater support to promote social use of the language. Lots of those young people coming out of Welsh-medium education are not using the language in the streets, in the community in Newport, and I'd be interested in your ideas as to how that community use might be developed, promoted and strengthened.

Thank you very much. I am going to reply in Welsh, because I'm aware that your Welsh is excellent, John—I'm sure that you don't need the headset, but we'll see—just to say that I'm very happy with the enthusiasm that there is in the Newport area and beyond in terms of the Welsh language, and it's wonderful to see that there'll be a new school in that area. The schools that are already there are full to the brim already, so there are opportunities for people to ensure that there are sufficient numbers of people speaking the language. And the next step is to ensure that they do speak Welsh outside of the school. There are two aims here. There's one to increase the number of people who can speak Welsh and then the second is to ensure that they do use the Welsh language. We need to double the number of people who use the Welsh language and we need to ensure that there are social opportunities available. That's why we hold events such as Dydd Miwsig Cymru—Welsh Language Music Day. I'm sure that there are events on that day in the Newport area, and it would be wonderful if you could let people know about those opportunities.

There are also opportunities for learners to come together through things such as the Siarad project, which is an additional project that we have launched with the national centre. So, I do think that it's important that we look at what these opportunities are to use the Welsh language once we've taught people, especially adults, so that they can use the language, so that it's not an artificial language, as some people have perceived it.

One of the things that's important for me is that we raise awareness again in that area. A few weeks ago, I went for a walk to the Llanthony area, which is just on the border with England. There are so many Welsh signs there. You forget that, at one time, the whole area was a Welsh stronghold. We need to raise this awareness again that this is where these people come from.

I also thank the Minister for her statement, and welcome its content, and continue to congratulate the Minister on her ambition in this area, while also recognising the innovative work of Alun Davies while he was a Minister. His work was far-reaching and innovative in this particular area, in ensuring that we do aim towards a million Welsh speakers.

As you've already mentioned, we will be regaining ground. When we talk about a million Welsh speakers, there were a million Welsh speakers in Wales some 120 years ago. Also, as you mentioned in your statement, the fact that the Welsh language still survives and prospers is incredible in and of itself and deserves to be celebrated, given our history of oppression. That's only one part of Welsh history but it did happen.

In the face of the reality that minority languages across the world are in retreat and are disappearing from the face of the earth when they live alongside a very strong global language—. But, of course, the Welsh language has managed to turn that corner, and that is reason for celebration because only three languages out of 7,000 languages on this earth have managed to turn that corner to stop the decline. Only three languages have turned that corner, to halt the decline and to make a u-turn and to start growing again. And Welsh is one of those three languages.

So, there is goodwill towards the language, but, of course, goodwill isn't always enough. There's always room for improvement. Now, Neath Port Talbot Council, for example, haven't opened a single Welsh-medium primary school in its history, since the county was established in 1996. This is in a county where there are still naturally Welsh-speaking communities. I applaud what John Griffiths has just said about Newport, and similar situations, but there are naturally Welsh-speaking areas that don't have Welsh-medium schools available, and have never had the opportunity to send their children to local schools. They've had to send them many miles away. That's the reality of the situation in Neath Port Talbot today, and that is a huge disappointment.

The City and County of Swansea have just closed the Felindre Welsh-medium primary school in the Parsel Mawr—the only naturally Welsh-speaking area in Swansea, in the uplands of the Swansea valley. Now, with 600 children in the Welsh-medium primary school in Pontybrenin and another 600 in Lôn Las primary school, and another 400 in Tirdeunaw, which isn't too far away, there was scope for collaboration, even changing catchment areas, rather than just closing the school down and seeing it lost as a resource for a Welsh-speaking community. And the Welsh Language Commissioner didn't have the powers to prevent the sale of the school site in an auction in London, and that will happen in around a fortnight's time.

Just one other issue before I conclude: linguistic pressures on the Welsh language will naturally emerge in building large, new housing estates. That is a significant and increasing challenge. I'm not going to take you through all of the stories or all of the challenges, but can I just ask what persuasion you as Minister are bringing to bear on the planning departments of local authorities to take seriously the requirement of the Welsh language, and pressures on the Welsh language, and to at least understand that there needs to be consideration of the Welsh language?

And to close, would you agree—

I thought you had finished, Dai, there. Could you ask your final question, please?

Thank you, Llywydd. This is the final question, you'll be pleased to hear: would you agree, Minister, that safeguarding and developing our naturally Welsh-speaking areas is at the heart of the intention of delivering 1 million Welsh speakers by 2050? Thank you.

Thank you, Dai. May I say that it is important to underline that languages die in the world every other week? I think it important that people can look to us and can learn from us. But I think it is important that we don't always talk about the death of the language and 'We are still here' and so on. We have to change the way we talk about the language. We need to celebrate, we need to look to the future. It's really important that we take positive steps, looking to the future, rather than the past. How are we going to inspire people to come to the language if we don't speak with that kind of positive vocabulary?

I'm sure that you'll be pleased to hear that I'll be having a conversation with Neath council tomorrow about the situation with regard to the Welsh language, but I'll also be visiting ysgol Bro Dur, and that is a new school that has opened in the area. Of course there is room for further discussion, but I do think, in terms of Swansea, they have moved quite far in this area. I know that Felindre has closed, but there were only 14 pupils at that school, and I thought that everyone understood that it made more sense. Moving ysgol Tan-y-lan to a new location means that 420 new places are available. Tirdeunaw and Pontybrenin are new schools. These are all new schools that have opened in Swansea. So, I think we need to give praise where it's due to Swansea for the journey that they have taken in this area.

In terms of the WESPs, we do have plans now for 10 years. Every council has received a target in terms of what they should be achieving over the next 10 years. So, that planning over the longer term is, hopefully, in place.

Finally, Rhun ap Iorwerth.

Thank you very much, Llywydd, for accepting my request to ask a few questions. I have two questions on education—schools education first of all. Now, we talk about this target of 1 million Welsh speakers by 2050, and it's good to see that everyone is working together towards that target. Everyone welcomes the target. We should be able to reach it because the role of schools is so very important, and there are two whole generations that are going to pass through our schools between now and 2050.

Do you as Minister agree with me that, in my constituency, every child brought up on Anglesey should be given an assurance that he or she will be entirely fluent in Welsh by the time they leave education? Whichever school that child attends, whether it's a school on the island or on the mainland. Because it's truly not fair for any child to go through an education system that doesn't enable them to play their full part in a society that is bilingual.

The second question, on adult education—to echo a point made by Siân Gwenllian. There are 405 learners in Anglesey at the moment receiving Welsh for adults education at the National Centre for Learning Welsh in the north west at Bangor University. They are concerned about the suggestion that you could be considering cutting up to £0.5 million from the budget of the National Centre for Learning Welsh.

It's entirely right, as you say, that you look at how that money is spent, to ensure that it is spent in the best way possible. But cutting some £0.5 million, if you're still considering that, would mean some £80,000 off the budget of the centre in the north west of Wales, which would correspond to around two posts. There's no doubt that that would have a direct impact on the capacity to teach those people across the north west, and those I am most concerned about—if you'll forgive me—those on Anglesey.

In areas such as Anglesey, where there is a great deal of in-migration from people who come to live on the island for entirely understandable reasons, it's crucial that opportunities are provided for them to learn Welsh, to understand the importance of the language in a bilingual community, and that the capacity is in place to provide those learning opportunities for them. So, when will you make a decision in order to, hopefully, give some assurances to the centre on the way forward?

Thank you. In terms of education, I think what's important is that we try to persuade parents to send their children to Welsh-medium schools where that's possible. So, that’s why I think what's important is that we start at the beginning with nursery schools. That's why an additional £1 million went into opening additional nursery schools.

Of course, Anglesey has a target, as does Gwynedd, in terms of where they should be reaching in terms of the expansion in the number of people who speak Welsh in their areas. So, this has to be something that we discuss with them, rather than something that we impose on them, or require them to do without us having that conversation. That's why that process is ongoing at the moment. That conversation is being had about where the WESPs should be in the long term. We have 10 years now to ensure that we are in the right place. That 10-year planning is being done, and that conversation is being had.

In terms of the situation with Welsh for adults, I do think that a great deal of funding goes into this. I want to ensure that it is spent in the right way. I also want to ensure that there is an opportunity for learners to use the Welsh language once they've finished their courses. So, if anything, I want to look at whether we have struck the right balance to ensure that there are opportunities outside, once they finished their learning, to ensure that they have an opportunity to use the Welsh language. I haven't made a decision. I will be making a decision over the coming month, so that they do receive that assurance.

Thank you to the Minister for the statement and for answering questions.