5. Statement by the Minister for International Relations and Welsh Language: Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:18 pm on 10 June 2020.

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Photo of Lynne Neagle Lynne Neagle Labour 3:18, 10 June 2020

Minister, I have been running an essay competition for children in the constituency during lockdown, entitled, 'My COVID superhero is...'. It has been inspirational and uplifting, but it has also been a really powerful way for me to hear the voices of children in my constituency. It has been very well supported by Ysgol Gyfun Gwynllyw, and I do support them for that, but I would like to associate myself with the remarks that Vikki Howells made about the difficulties being faced by families where a young person is in Welsh-medium education but the parents don't have a knowledge of Welsh. One of those young people has nominated her father as her superhero, because he has been helping her with her Welsh, and she tells me that it has been hard for him—her name is Nina—'because he has to translate my work to find out what to do to help me, and I have to help him to make sure it is correct as he translates it.' Now, all of us that are educating our children at home are facing massive challenges, but there are very real challenges if you haven't got an understanding of the language in which you're trying to help your child. Minister, what more can you do, in conjunction with the education Minister, to ensure that the support is there, so that all our young people can enjoy the educational opportunities we want them to have? Thank you.