1. Will the Minister make a statement on the delivery of Welsh-medium education in Pembrokeshire? OQ57499

Pembrokeshire, like all local authorities, has been busy preparing the new Welsh in education strategic plan, setting out how they propose to grow their Welsh-medium provision by 10 to 14 per cent over the next 10 years. I look forward to receiving their draft at the end of this month.

Thank you for that response, Minister. As you know, yesterday, the Urdd celebrated its centenary, and as you also know, the organisation does incredible work in providing opportunities for children and young people to learn and to socialise through the medium of Welsh. I'm sure that you will join me in thanking the volunteers and staff over the years who have contributed so much for the children of Wales.

You will be aware that the demand for Welsh-medium education has increased substantially, so much so that local councillors in my area have noted that it is greater than the number of places available. There are children now who are being turned away, and as a result, parents are very concerned that there is a postcode lottery being created in Pembrokeshire. Given these circumstances, what support can the Welsh Government provide to tackle the substantial lack of Welsh-medium places in Pembrokeshire at the moment, and what discussions have been had with Pembrokeshire County Council in order to develop a long-term strategy for Welsh-medium education in the area?

I thank the Member for the opportunity to echo his congratulations to the Urdd for their incredible work over a century in providing youth services to our young people here in Wales. I'm sure I will share with him some happy memories of how important the Urdd was to me as a boy growing up. So, I'm happy to echo the Member's congratulations.

The local authority in Pembrokeshire shares our view as a Government that the issue of insufficient places available is an important issue, and they have been working on their strategic plan with that in mind. I also know that Rhieni dros Addysg Gymraeg have been working with many families in Pembrokeshire to support them in appeals on decisions in terms of access to specific schools. The range proposed by the council in its draft plan means that there will be an increase of up to 14 per cent, as I stated in my first answer. There are also plans in place by the authority to establish a new school and to look at the categorisation of schools and to change some categorisation to ensure that there is greater provision through the medium of Welsh, as well as the need to invest in the early years too. So, that element of ambition is there in the council's strategic plan in order to enhance provision.

The Member will also be aware that a capital programme was announced last year of some £30 million in order to provide investment in Welsh-medium education infrastructure here in Wales, and many of our local authorities have expressed an interest in that. The process is ongoing at the moment. We are looking at those proposals and comparing them with the level of ambition in the WESPs, and I will be able to say more about that in February.