The following amendment has been selected: amendment 1 in the name of Lesley Griffiths. 

The next item is item 7, the Welsh Conservatives debate on the Welsh language. I call on Tom Giffard to move the motion.

Motion NDM8212 Darren Millar

To propose that the Senedd:

1. Notes the Cymraeg 2050: Work Programme 2021 to 2026.

2. Expresses concern that the 2021 Census revealed that the number of people who say they can speak Welsh decreased by more than 20,000.

3. Believes that the Welsh language is a cultural asset which brings many benefits to Wales.

4. Recognises the disparity in confidence amongst Welsh speakers.

5. Calls on the Welsh Government to explore opportunities to expand and promote the day-to-day use of the Welsh language.

Motion moved.

Thank you very much, Llywydd. I’d like to start by wishing everyone in the Senedd today and everyone watching across Wales a very happy St David’s Day. I’m proud to have the opportunity to open this debate today, which was tabled in the name of Darren Millar, because it is a very important debate to have in the Senedd, especially on St David’s Day. It’s important that we share the message from the Senedd to the people of Wales to say that our Welsh language doesn’t just belong to people who speak the language fluently, but belongs to every person living in Wales.

Welsh is not just a language in the traditional sense. For most of us it’s a story, the story of our journey with the Welsh language. Some of us will have spoken Welsh at home and at school, and will have lived in predominantly Welsh-speaking communities throughout our lives. Perhaps others are learning Welsh for the first time, having developed an interest in or love for our country. And some may only know a few words or phrases, but they use them with pride whenever they feel comfortable in doing so. That’s why I’m looking forward to hearing from colleagues from all parts of the Chamber today, to hear about their Welsh story.

For me, it’s a little more complicated. I went to a second-language Welsh school and got a GCSE in second-language Welsh, and after that I worked at a Welsh language school as a teaching assistant in the year after I left school myself. When I left school my Welsh wasn’t of a high standard because it wasn’t very important to me to develop that. Although most of my teaching was in English, the immersion involved in having to speak it every day with staff and pupils in an educational setting advanced my skills significantly. Then, throughout my university experience and in the following decade, I barely spoke a word of Welsh, and I’d almost forgotten that I could speak the language at all.

Then, in 2021, I was elected to the Senedd in Cardiff Bay, and initially I kept quiet about the fact that I could speak Welsh at all. And then I met someone for the first time, someone called Samuel Kurtz. Well, actually it was the second time, but I promised not to talk about the first. But even though Sam’s Welsh was better than mine, he felt the same way that I did. He felt that he hadn’t used his skills enough over recent years, and he felt, like me, that they had become rusty. So we decided to learn Welsh together using the services available here in the Senedd, and that was a turning point for me. Having someone to chat to in Welsh, and also learn with in Welsh—that was very important to me. Now I feel more able to do a tv or radio interview in Welsh, and I’m looking forward to tomorrow night, when I'll be doing Hawl i Holi on Radio Cymru with Heledd Fychan.

Speaking Welsh is as much to do with confidence as it is to do with skills. It doesn’t matter how old you are or how good your Welsh skills are—now is always the best time to learn. But to inspire someone to accept that challenge we need strong role models in the Welsh language. That’s why it’s nice to see a number of our institutions, most notably the FAW, capitalising on opportunities to normalise the speaking of Welsh. But for me, my Welsh role model is a person, and he is a person whom I know would have wanted to be here today. My role model in the Welsh language is Paul Davies. Paul is just as proud of his Welsh-speaking identity, and of the Welsh language, as he is of his British one. And that's what I felt. He showed me that there was no conflict or contradiction between being Welsh and speaking Welsh, and being a Conservative. The Conservative party has been responsible for some of the biggest developments in Welsh language policy in history. Conservatives in Government commenced the Welsh Language Act 1993, the formation of the Welsh Language Board, developments in Welsh education and, of course, the establishment of the first television channel in the Welsh language, S4C.

But we know there is much more to say, and that's why we are moving this motion today. The results of the latest census, which showed a reduction in the number of Welsh speakers over the last decade, were extremely disappointing. And they put the 'Cymraeg 2050' strategy of the Welsh Government at significant risk of not being achieved. But what worries me the most is the reduction of 6 per cent in the number of Welsh speakers between the ages of five and 15, those who learn Welsh in formal settings. In addition, we have seen reductions in traditional Welsh language areas such as Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire and Gwynedd. There is much more to be said during this debate by Members on all sides, and I'm sure those things will be said. 

What we intend to achieve is twofold. First, we are calling on the Welsh Government to expand the opportunities it offers people to speak Welsh in the first place, because we know that these experiences can be formative in people's lives. And secondly, we are moving this debate today because it is sending a clear message to people all over Wales that this is your language, whatever your level, so speak it, use it and look after it so that future generations can do the same. Thank you very much.

Joyce Watson took the Chair. 

I have selected the amendment to the motion. I call on the Minister for Education and Welsh Language to formally move amendment 1 tabled in the name of Lesley Griffiths.

Amendment 1—Lesley Griffiths

Add as new points at end of motion:

Recognises that other data sources show that an increasing amount of people have some Welsh-speaking ability and that increasing numbers of children are attending Welsh-medium education.

Welcomes:

(a) that all local authorities in Wales have published new Welsh in Education Strategic Plans to increase access to Welsh language learning across all school language categories;

(b) the work of the Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities to strengthen Welsh at a community level; and

(c) the work of our partner organisations such as Mudiad Meithrin, the National Centre for Learning Welsh, the Urdd, the National Eisteddfod, the Mentrau Iaith, and others, to provide opportunities to use the language.

Amendment 1 moved.

Formally.

Could I thank the Conservatives for bringing this debate forward today? I thank Tom for sharing his journey with the language. It was delightful to hear you and the fact that your confidence has increased during the period you've been here. I'm looking forward to being on Hawl i Holi, something that you wouldn't have done a couple of months ago, but you are doing it tomorrow night. I think that that's excellent and shows that it is possible to have that support, and the difference that it makes in of terms of taking that opportunity to take a chance on speaking Welsh, regardless of making any errors. It's lovely to hear more Welsh here and more people trying to use their Welsh.

Certainly, it is easy for somebody like me, Heledd Fychan, who was brought up in Anglesey to Welsh-speaking parents, to be here speaking Welsh. I was brought up in a community where there was almost no English. Indeed, when I went to university I started speaking English day to day. So, I think it's vital that if we are serious about wanting to see the Welsh language surviving into the future, it's not people like me who are going to save the language, but those who do take that chance and who set out to learn and support the language.

As it's St David's Day, we will all remember today the words of St David in terms of doing the little things. Certainly, when it comes to the Welsh language and its survival, we can all, confident Welsh speakers, learners, and supporters of the language alike—and those with Welsh in their hearts, not in their heads—do the little things every day to ensure a future for the language. But it's also clear that this will not be enough, and that the Government needs to do the big things if we want to reach the goal of a million Welsh speakers. This is particularly true following the results of the recent census, with the number of Welsh speakers having fallen to 17.8 per cent, the lowest figure on record.

As we see in the Government's amendment, this runs counter to some other data sources. But as I have said a number of times now, it is worrying to hear the Government time and again questioning the census figures, given that, until this year, they have used them as the basis for planning the growth of the language. That is why, therefore, although we agree with the remaining points in the Government amendment, we as Plaid will abstain from supporting the amendment, as we do not believe that questioning the validity of the census data is genuinely helpful in terms of ensuring the survival of the language.

But setting the numbers issue aside for a moment, I hope that we can all agree that there has been a shift in attitudes towards the language over recent years, with more people generating positivity about the language and wanting to learn it. We can’t over-emphasise the importance of organisations such as the FAW, the Urdd and others in terms of ensuring that more and more people begin to feel that the language belongs to them, whether they speak the language or not. I will never, as long as I am alive, forget seeing Gareth Bale and the rest of the team singing ‘Yma o Hyd’ together with Dafydd Iwan. That was a big moment for the language, and one that, you could argue, was rooted in the ‘Fate of the Language’—‘Tynged yr Iaith’—lecture by Saunders Lewis in 1962, which was the trigger for establishing Cymdeithas yr Iaith.

Regarding today's original motion, I am pleased to see the emphasis from the Conservatives on the importance of using the Welsh language. It is certainly essential to provide opportunities to use the Welsh language beyond the classroom or at work, but, unfortunately, the opportunity to do so remains inconsistent throughout Wales. Take, for example, services provided in the Welsh language, or the opportunity to enjoy through the Welsh language or to get involved in leisure activities. Although the standards have improved access to services, very often, these services have been restricted. We must continue to strengthen this element.

The same is also true, of course, in terms of access to Welsh education, and the inconsistency in terms of how Welsh is taught in English-medium schools. One thing that has saddened me since becoming a Member of the Senedd is the number of young people that I have met who have told me of their anger regarding the fact that they can’t speak Welsh, despite having attended schools in Wales and having received Welsh lessons, and having a Welsh GCSE very often. And these are young people born since the inception of the Senedd, and it is our responsibility—through the Welsh Language Education Bill, which is part of the co-operation agreement—that we rectify this error for future generations. Every pupil in Wales should leave school able to speak Welsh and English confidently—along with other languages—and failing to set that as a goal and taking action to make it happen would be a failure on our part.

Obviously, a lack of teachers is something we’re also aware of, and we have to ensure growth in that area. We also need to ensure digital opportunities in the Welsh language. With more and more of us using online content, we have to ensure that those are available too. It is just as important as having a bible in Welsh was, following its translation by Bishop William Morgan in 1588.

The Welsh language belongs to us all, but if we want everyone to have the opportunity to learn and use it, wherever they live in Wales, then there is a great deal of work still ahead of us. The language may still be 'yma o hyd'—still here—despite everyone and everything, but its future remains fragile if we don't also see radical action.

I’m going to call Gareth Davies next, and I understand that he has apologised to the Llywydd for his earlier contribution, and therefore, he is able to take part in this debate.

Thank you very much, acting Llywydd. It’s a pleasure to participate in this debate this afternoon, and though I can speak Welsh when I put my mind to it, I don’t usually speak as much Welsh as I should, perhaps. I think in English, therefore, I’d have to think twice if I hear or speak Welsh.

As everyone’s heard through this debate, the Welsh language is at the heart of our nation, and it is important that we safeguard and promote the language. Although we all want Wales to be a bilingual nation, unfortunately—

I'm sorry. You'll have to bear with me a little bit.

—the 2021 census figures do show a decline in the numbers of Welsh speakers. And it is important that we are honest about the causes and solutions to this. 

The Conservative Government, under Margaret Thatcher, created S4C in 1982, bringing the Welsh language to homes in Wales as well as making the Welsh language equal with the English language. Now, 25 years of Labour and Plaid control haven't brought the Welsh language closer to the people of Wales and, indeed, there have been some retrograde steps. Because of this, the aspiration of a bilingual nation hasn't become a reality because of the failure of successive Governments here. Rather than continuing with the old order, the Welsh Conservatives are calling for the Welsh language to become a language used on a daily basis, rather than something that is consistently run by quangos and usually isn't appropriate to the culture of places like Rhyl and Prestatyn in the Vale of Clwyd. This is the best way for learners to develop confidence and to make the Welsh language a part of the identity of everyone in Wales, not just the first language speakers. Thank you very much. 

Apologies—I'll speak in English. 

I had no intention of speaking in this debate until I heard the beginning of it, and my Welsh is nowhere near good enough to write a speech in Welsh from the start in 10 minutes or a quarter of an hour, so I hope people will accept that. 

Where are we with the Welsh language? Can I talk about some positives? When Members have visited English-medium primary schools, you must have been impressed by the amount of incidental Welsh that is used there, and not just 'Bore da, prynhawn da' and general greetings, but the amount of general incidental Welsh, and the amount of Welsh on the walls. And I'm sure not one of those children's parents put them down as Welsh speaking, yet every day, those children speak Welsh in school. And I think that's one of the problems with the self-assessment, or in many cases, the parental assessment, of the ability to speak Welsh: it gives you numbers and people will use them to beat the Government around the head or congratulate it—although I think beating it around the head is probably the more popular view—but I think that we do need to get to the bottom of where we are with the Welsh language.

The growth in Welsh-medium schools across Wales—and I can talk about Swansea East. When my stepdaughter went to school, there was only Ysgol Gyfun Gŵyr. Now, in secondary schools, there is Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Bryn Tawe, but also we used to have Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Lôn Las, the only Welsh-medium primary school. Now, and I'm just concentrating on Swansea East, we've got Ysgol Gymraeg y Cwm as well as Lôn Las, and then you've got Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Tan-y-lan, where my grandson goes, then you've got Ysgol Gynradd Gymraeg Tirdeunaw, where members of my family work. So, there has been a huge growth in the provision of Welsh-medium education. I'm sure somebody's going to say later on that, if you create Welsh-medium schools, parents will send their children to them. And I'm sure somebody else is going to say that we need more Welsh-medium schools. I don't disagree with any of that. I think we need to have a strategy very much on what level of Welsh-medium schools we think each area should have, rather than having a bottom-up approach by the local authority. Having this, 'We think Swansea should have...' and I can only talk about Swansea East, we could probably do with at least one more Welsh-medium primary school, though there are difficulties in finding somewhere. We're a highly built-up area, as anybody else who represents the area will be aware. So, there's not a lot of land anywhere near where people live.

Can I just talk about some of the problems? If I talk about Bro Cymru, the big Welsh-speaking heartland, which used to stretch from most of Ynys Môn right the way down to Cwmllynfell, it's become more patchy. I haven't seen the full results from this census, but at a quick guess, it will have become even more patchy. Amongst many arguments I had with the previous First Minister, I said, 'You need 80 per cent of the population speaking Welsh in an area for that language to be the language of the area', because if you've got 80 per cent speaking there, if you meet somebody, you've got a four in five chance of the person you're speaking to speaking in Welsh—it's worth trying. When you get down to 50 per cent, it's a one in two chance, and it's probably not worth trying. When I visit Caernarfon—I'm sure that other people know Caernarfon better then me; I'm sure that  Heledd Fychan from Ynys Môn knows it far better than I do—it is the language of the street. If you go into a pub, they expect you to order beer in Welsh. If you order food, they expect you to order food in Welsh. And when you go into shops, they expect you to purchase items in Welsh. I come from Morriston where about one in five of the population speaks Welsh, but there's a lack of expectation. Some people do speak Welsh when they go into shops, et cetera, on a bit of a hit-or-miss basis, but most people don't bother. I could say that it's maybe the general politeness of Welsh speakers, but as my wife and daughter are both Welsh speakers, I wouldn't put it down to that.

I speak Welsh every day, but I choose who I speak it to. I'm glad Delyth has come into the room now, because she's one of the few people here I speak Welsh to, and if I write to Delyth, I always write to her in Welsh. But I'm confident that she's not going to make fun of me if I do so, and I think that that is one of the problems we have with those of us who are ddim yn hyderus yn Gymraeg, and certainly ddim yn hyderus yn y Siambr.

Finally, we really need to know how often people are speaking Welsh. I know people who can speak Welsh, but never do, and I think we need to find out how many people speak it daily or weekly. I think we need that in the census, and perhaps we might get a more accurate result, but perhaps more importantly a more meaningful result.

I'm going to have my very first go today at siarad Cymraeg yn y Siambr.

As Eifion Wyn the poet said:

'Dearest Wales, my home / of fruits and lakes untold / her mountains all enfolded / my love will ne'er grow cold.'

It's great to take part in this debate and draw attention to the importance of the Welsh language. As a Member of the Senedd for Brecon and Radnorshire, I have communities where Welsh is the first language and I understand how important the language is to them.

I will say, Cadeirydd, that that is probably the most nerve-racking thing I've ever had to say in this Chamber, and as a Welsh learner, it is very difficult sometimes for people to come forward. As Mike Hedges said, sometimes, we feel that we're going to be laughed at, that we don't say things correctly. I personally feel a bit of pride for doing that in my own national Parliament, speaking in my own national tongue, and I think it's very, very important.

I don't want to do some summing up, but it's very like what Heledd said, actually, about somebody who learned Welsh in school. It's what I did; I had a GCSE and got a B in my GCSE yn Gymraeg, and I still feel very angry about the fact that I cannot use and converse in my natural, native tongue in Wales, because I'm not confident enough to do that. I think many young people like myself of my age, about 31, have that experience, and I think where I come from, in places of mid Wales, we didn't really have the opportunity to speak the language. There are only very few communities in my patch—Ystradgynlais in the south, Sennybridge and a few places in the north—which actually do speak Welsh, and I do feel a bit sorry for them, sometimes, when I go and meet constituents there that I cannot talk with them in the language that they wish speak. That is why I'm very supportive of work that the Welsh Government has been doing to try and get more Welsh-medium schools across all parts of Wales, because I want to see Welsh-medium education in places like Brecon and Radnorshire. Because if you are going to grow the Welsh language across Wales, you need to make sure that it's going places where the language has been forgotten and pushed out, and there are places in my constituency where I'm from, around the Hay-on-Wye area, in Radnorshire particularly, we have no Welsh-medium education. If we do, it's put in mainstream with English education and pupils tend to make their choices, and they tend to want to go into the English stream and desert the Welsh stream. And then that's just not good enough. So, I want to see more Welsh-medium education being delivered right across Wales, but especially in those places where I think the language has been forgotten.

And I'm not going to speak for very long today, but I just want to say to every Welsh learner out there: I spoke in our national Parliament with all the nerves and expectation of what you should say and how to say it right and I've done it, so I encourage every Welsh learner right across Wales to siarad Cymraeg—speak in Welsh—enjoy the language. And if we all speak Welsh, I'm sure the language will grow and we'll get more Welsh speakers right across our great nation. Diolch, Cadeirydd.

I'd like to thank the Conservatives for bringing this motion forward and to congratulate them on their contributions in the Welsh language. You mentioned the fact, and took pride in the fact, that S4C had been established by a Conservative Government. Of course, we would like to remind you about the stand taken by Gwynfor Evans, the former leader of Plaid Cymru, which led to the u-turn that led to the establishment of S4C. And I'd also like to pay tribute to the hundreds of campaigners, Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg and others, who fought for so long—for decades indeed—for a Welsh language channel, which has proven so crucial in safeguarding the Welsh language.

The census results do show a decline in the percentage of Welsh speakers in almost all areas, including for all age groups and for those between three and 15 years of age in all counties in my region. And the battle, as we have heard today, for access to Welsh-medium education has been long and frustrating in the area that I now represent, as in many areas of Wales. And it's a battle that I have lived through personally, not only for my own children in the Swansea area to try to open the Llwynderw Welsh-medium primary school, but also as a child growing up in Gwent, where the Labor council at the time—in the 1970s and 1980s—refused to open Welsh schools and were only willing to open units that were tied to English-medium schools. And I and my sister, because there was no comprehensive school—similar to what James Evans mentioned in his own area—had to travel across counties for many hours on buses to access Welsh-medium education.

And we also know that a high number of those who have been educated through the medium of Welsh lose their skills and confidence in using the language, having left school at 16 or 18 years old. I wouldn't be fluent—we spoke English at home—because I'm one of those characteristic stories where the grandparents were all Welsh-speaking, but my parents weren't given a Welsh-medium education, as children of the 1930s and 1940s, but were determined to campaign for Welsh-medium education so that my generation didn't miss out on the treasure that is the Welsh language.

We have to develop Welsh-medium and bilingual training and study opportunities in our further education colleges and in universities and in the workplace, as well as in our schools, for those in statutory education. And I'd like to pay tribute to the work of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol in contributing directly to the aim of ensuring that this happens, and that people do continue to develop their Welsh language skills once they have left school. The continuity of this work is crucial if we are going to double the daily use of the Welsh language and create workplaces where people are confident in using the Welsh language—creating workplaces and creating communities. And I was recently at Neath College, where excellent work is being done to deliver that.

The Swansea valley, where I live now, is an area of special linguistic sensitivity—that boundary that Mike Hedges mentioned. Ensuring not only access to Welsh-medium education, but also these opportunities to use the language, is crucial to the survival of the language in that area and similar areas, which is recognised in the last clause of the motion.

It is recognised that it's crucial that you need a diversity of ways to promote the language in order to enable and increase its use by old and new Welsh speakers. It is clear from the census that we need to improve on what's been done in the past, but we must also guard against throwing the baby out with the bath water in developing stronger, more effective policies. We need assurances that the initiatives that have received investment from the Welsh Government, for example, and have proved successful in promoting the use of the Welsh language, will continue to be supported. In the case of the Swansea valley, the papur bro, Llais—and I declare an interest; I am on the committee of that papur bro—the menter iaith and the Urdd do excellent work. I've previously spoken about the work of Tŷ'r Gwrhyd, which is a Welsh centre in Pontardawe, which was established with the support of a Welsh Government grant. It's a great example of what's possible in securing informal support for Welsh-medium education for children and adults and learners and to ensure community use of the Welsh language. So, I would like to know from the Minister what the Government's vision is in terms of building on these successful investments that have a successful track record of strengthening the Welsh language at a community level. Tŷ Tawe in Swansea is another example of an institution that's successful in this regard. Will the Government provide more support to centres such as Tŷ Tawe to enable them to continue with their activities, but also to develop that activity further?

In addition, in terms of promoting and safeguarding the language, we must ensure that every department within Government is talking to each other. We've had an example of this in my area, where the department for the Welsh language and the education department, although they're under the same Minister, perhaps aren't communicating when funding is allocated and promised to an authority for a plan that would have a detrimental impact on the Welsh language. 

So, I would like to thank the Conservatives for bringing this important debate before us. It's been so wonderful to hear all of our stories about our relationship with the Welsh language. 

I now call on the Minister for Education and Welsh Language, Jeremy Miles. 

Well, happy St David's Day to everyone. We should remember that the Welsh language isn't just for St David's Day, but for every day, and, whatever Welsh you do have, do make use of that Welsh language every chance you get: use, use, use—that's the solution. I have to say, I haven't heard Tom Giffard, Gareth Davies or James Evans speaking so much Welsh, so congratulations to them on making those contributions in Welsh. It was good to hear that, even if it wasn't good to hear that empty argument that Margaret Thatcher was the best friend of the Welsh language. 

I often say that the Welsh language belongs to us all, as does the responsibility for its future. Our language is something that we have to include in all aspects of our work and daily lives throughout the year. Our aim is to make it a part of all aspects of our work within the Welsh Government, as Sioned Williams has just mentioned. Likewise, we want to provide opportunities for the people of Wales to use the Welsh language in their daily lives, because, essentially, language is about people—it doesn't exist without a community of people to speak the language. Only yesterday, the Minister for Social Justice made a statement on the ability of the Welsh language to bring communities together.

In terms of the motion before us, although I agree with the main message, I do think that we do need to add to it to recognise the work that we and our partners are already doing to put 'Cymraeg 2050' in train. First of all, let me emphasise our long-term commitment to our language. 'Cymraeg 2050' is a substantial work programme that is operational now, but will run for decades. You can't make progress in language policy overnight, and it's only since 2017 that the strategy has been in place, but, even in that brief period of time, we have ensured that every local authority in Wales has published plans to increase access to the Welsh language across all categories of schools, as Mike Hedges mentioned.

Before the end of the month, I will publish a work programme for next year, but bear in mind, at the end of the day, it's not documents that are important, but people, and the people of Wales are with us on the Welsh language. Eighty-six per cent of adults believe that our language is something to be proud of, so I continue to be optimistic about the journey before us. I'm not excusing the census results, but it's important to note that we don't know all of the facts in terms of holding a census during a global pandemic. I share the concern expressed by Members about the results. Since we have learnt of those results, we have carried out initial analysis of the statistics, and more results and more analysis is yet to come. It's important that we work on an evidence basis. It's worth noting that the different results from the Welsh language surveys tell us different things. The most recent annual population survey shows that over 900,000 people can speak Welsh, as compared to the 538,000 that the 2021 census notes. We need to know why that's the case, and I would encourage Heledd Fychan not to ignore that broader data; we must see the bigger picture. That's why officials are working with the Office for National Statistics in order to understand the situation better.

And in terms of the facts, we also want to understand what's happening in what are traditionally called the Welsh-speaking heartlands. That's why I was pleased to launch the Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities last August. I will pay close attention to the recommendations made by the commission, and I'm sure that those recommendations will include work for me and for many others and institutions, including, by the way, each and every one of us here today. The Welsh language belongs—

Will you take an intervention?

Yes, I will.

Thank you very much, Minister. And as you've named me, I thought I'd just want to say that I don't disregard the rest of the data, but, obviously, the 2011 census was the basis of the 'Cymraeg 2050' strategy. I'm just concerned that the other samples are smaller—for example, the national survey; I think it was 1,000 people, but you can correct me if I'm wrong—compared with the whole population having to contribute to the census. So, I certainly want to understand the data better, but my argument is that I don't understand the Government's shift in terms of emphasising the census's importance in the past and then disregarding it if it doesn't fit with what you want it to tell us this time.

Well, there's been no shift, and we are not disregarding anything. The census is our measure, but we have to look at the broader context if we want to base our policies on facts rather than what we would want to see. That's why looking at the bigger picture is so very important.

But, as I was saying, it's also important that we look at the work that the Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities will do, because there will certainly be some policy recommendations as a result of their work, and I'm sure there will be further opportunities for us to debate and discuss those.

The Member mentioned that the Welsh language is an important cultural asset; I agree. In looking at how football has embraced our language here in Wales and on the international stage over recent years, I think we can clearly see what sport can contribute to our language and our national ethos. I went to a Dydd Miwsig Cymru event recently. It was wonderful to see so much enthusiasm for the Welsh language and for our culture, not just in Wales but beyond too—people coming together because of the Welsh language, Welsh culture in Welsh. As I said, our language is about people. And the collaboration we saw on that day between schools, mentrau iaith and a host of other people and organisations was wonderful. I'd like to thank them and thank Dydd Miwsig Cymru for their work throughout the year.

I also announced a new grant to nurture skills and the ability to create opportunities for people to come together at Welsh language music events and gigs, and I do want to work with other Ministers, and Plaid Cymru, through the co-operation agreement, in order to root the Welsh language in our new culture strategy.

We heard from Tom Giffard at the outset about the confidence levels of Welsh speakers and the importance of increasing the opportunities to use the language. I agree; that's the core of my mission. That's why we have the National Centre for Learning Welsh, and I'd like to thank them for their work. Enabling and empowering new speakers, and those who haven't used the Welsh language routinely for a while, to use the Welsh that they have is crucially important. So, my message to everyone learning Welsh or those who speak Welsh but are perhaps lacking confidence is: go for it. Use what Welsh you have wherever you can, and I'll be working to create more opportunities for you. Word by word, sentence by sentence, you will develop confidence and also inspire others. The Government's commitment to our language is quite clear: we want to see a prosperous future for the language.

Will you take an intervention?

Certainly.

Diolch. Thank you, Minister, and Dydd Gŵyl Dewi hapus. I just wanted to just ask you about—. Everyone here, I think, wants to see Welsh language spoken more across Wales, but I'm wondering how we do that when we have a teacher retention and recruitment crisis at the moment, which also means that we can't attract those Welsh-speaking, core-subject-teaching teachers into our Welsh-medium schools, and, if we want to develop those Welsh-medium schools, which I think all parties have said that they want to see, how are we going to do that when we can't get the teachers into those Welsh-medium schools at the moment, speaking Welsh and teaching those core subjects? Thank you. 

As the Member will know from our previous discussions, we've been working with our partners in relation to what is obviously the thorny challenge of increasing the numbers of teachers able to teach through the medium of Welsh. And happily, as she knows, we have a 10-year plan that we've been working on together, which is the product of lots of creativity and commitment right across Wales, and I thank all our partners for their contribution to that. We will want to make sure that everything in that plan is driven forward, so that we can maximise the opportunity of attracting people to the profession. We have a range of financial incentives, but other means as well of increasing the numbers coming into the profession to teach through the medium of Welsh.

And, as she knows, I'll be reporting regularly to the Senedd on progress against that plan, and I'm very clear that we will continue to build on the things that are effective and we'll stop doing the things that are not effective. The objective is to increase the numbers, as I know that she wants us to do as well, so that every child in Wales that wants a Welsh language education can receive one. 

We hope that each and every one of you, from whatever party or linguistic experience, will commit today on St David's Day to working throughout the year to create a Wales where future generations can use the Welsh language in all aspects of their lives. The Welsh language belongs to us all, and as I'm sure Dewi Sant would say if he was contributing to this debate: be joyful, do the little things, and keep the faith.

I call on Tom Giffard to reply to the debate. 

Thank you very much, temporary Presiding Officer. I agree with what the Minister said at the end—Welsh belongs to us all—and that's why it was nice to hear people who I know can speak some Welsh within our group, but we haven't heard it in the Chamber so far. So, could I just start by saying that I was very pleased to hear James Evans and Gareth Davies speaking Welsh in the Chamber today? So, I congratulate both of them. And the Minister is right in terms of what he said: 86 per cent of people believe that the Welsh language is something to be proud of, and he's right that it doesn't matter whether you speak Welsh or English, or if you know some Welsh words; it's important that you develop the language skills that you have, and, as I said at the outset, that was my story as well.

James Evans and Mike Hedges and the Minister talked about confidence, which is the most important thing when it comes to speaking Welsh and everyday Welsh language skills. But it's also important that people in Wales can have Welsh-medium education, and that's why it was nice to hear Sioned Williams and Mike Hedges talking about the importance of Welsh-medium schools and their availability. And Mike is right: both of us represent Swansea, and we've seen developments in the city of Swansea in terms of Welsh-medium schools over recent years. But as Heledd Fychan mentioned, 'Cymraeg 2050' has an ambitious target—nobody is shrinking from that. The only way that we can reach that target is by co-operating and working in partnership. 

And the reason that we've brought this debate forward today is that we want to be a critical friend to the Government. We want to encourage the Minister to redouble his efforts, I hope, particularly if we look back at the 2021 census. I'm sure that we're all very aware of the challenges facing the education sector. We've heard Laura Anne Jones talking about the problems that the education sector faces, particularly in terms of the recruitment of Welsh speakers to teach through the medium of Welsh in first-language and second-language Welsh settings. And a high percentage of teachers are nearing retirement, and a great number of them could choose to retire early, but despite this we're not recruiting enough new teachers who can teach through the medium of Welsh. This will be a barrier in five, 10, 15 years' time, and it will hinder the Welsh Government's ambitions to have a million Welsh speakers, which we all want to see. According to the Welsh Government's own data, in order to reach that target, they should be recruiting 550 teachers per year, but the reality is very different—the true figure is 500 teachers short of the necessary recruitment target. So, in light of this, could I encourage the Minister for the Welsh language to redouble his efforts to ensure that we have enough teachers who can teach through the medium of Welsh in the future?

And let's be clear: these recruitment challenges are very complex. There is no one single answer to this, but that's why we need co-operation between the Welsh Government, higher education, further education and local authorities. Everyone needs to be singing from the same hymn sheet. I know that my fellow Member Samuel Kurtz has raised with the Minister the importance of accreditation of initial teacher education as a possible solution to these challenges. I'd like to hear more from the Minister on this issue after the consultation came to an end at the end of January. I hope that everyone agrees that partnership in initial teacher education can play a key role in developing an education workforce that is bilingual. We have to ensure that the criteria align with the Government's policy by providing practical ways in which the Government can show that 'Cymraeg 2050' is not just a target, but an intention as well.

To close, Llywydd, I'd like to reiterate my initial point. The purpose of this motion is not to apportion blame on the Welsh Government, or whatever. We want you to succeed. We all want to see you succeed. We all want to see a million Welsh speakers in Wales, but for that to become a reality, we have to be ready, to be progressive and ambitious in our decisions. And with that, I encourage all Members to vote in favour of our motion today. Thank you very much.

The Llywydd took the Chair.

The proposal is to agree the motion without amendment. Does any Member object? [Objection.] There is an objection, and I will therefore defer voting until voting time. 

Voting deferred until voting time.