Welsh as a Community Language

Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Mental Health, Wellbeing and Welsh Language – in the Senedd at 3:05 pm on 24 March 2021.

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Photo of Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan Labour 3:05, 24 March 2021

(Translated)

Thank you very much, Helen Mary, and certainly we're aware of the great work that the mentrau iaith have done in recent years. One of the things that we've done in the pandemic is to ensure that we've had a community audit to see what the impact has been on the Welsh language from the pandemic, because a lot of groups have not been able to meet during this period, and the mentrau iaith have helped us with a lot of that work of ensuring that we know what's happening on the ground. I'm pleased that we've been able to provide additional funding to the Llandeilo centre—£0.2 million in March to Menter Dinefwr—so, we've been able to provide funding to them, and I do hope that that is a step forward. 

But one of the things that we've done as a result of that audit is that we brought a group together, and nine recommendations have now been produced. And one of the things that we hope to do is to give the mentrau iaith a new shape—we've done this with the mentrau iaith—to ensure that they do move together so that they do understand that an important part of their work is to do with economic development, not just to go out into communities and promote the Welsh language. Trying to maintain and develop jobs in the area will become a part of their core work in the future. We have been working closely with them on that, and we do hope that that will help to stabilise them for the long term.