Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Education and Welsh Language – in the Senedd at 2:38 pm on 8 February 2023.
Thank you, Llywydd. Minister, yesterday, during the debate on the draft budget, I asked the Minister for finance to consider the budget implications in terms of the target of a million Welsh speakers, and, specifically, whether there are any plans to support free entry for local families or low-income families to the Urdd Eisteddfod and the National Eisteddfod this year. Last year, you invested in free entry to the Urdd Eisteddfod for everyone in the organisation's centenary year, as well as 15,000 free tickets to the National Eisteddfod. Both schemes were a success, with the Urdd reporting an increase of 31 per cent in the number of attendees, with 20 per cent of visitors coming from 40 per cent of the most deprived areas in Denbighshire. Do you intend to continue with this investment, to ensure that local families on low incomes can continue to enjoy what both of these festivals have to offer, and to benefit from what they have to offer too as part of the target of reaching a million Welsh speakers?