Jeremy Miles MS, Minister for Education and Welsh Language
On 27 March 2023 I published a White Paper outlining our proposals for a Welsh Language Education Bill. 538 written responses were received during the consultation period. Today, I am publishing a report summarising those responses along with the individual responses received. These documents are available on the Welsh Government’s website. I am very grateful to everyone who took the time to consider our proposals and to prepare their responses to the consultation.
Our proposals for the Bill were presented in the context of the significant challenge posed by the Cymraeg 2050 strategy, and the target of one million speakers. This calls for transformational changes to the way we think about the Welsh language and the role of education in this context. The White Paper therefore set out the steps we propose to enable all pupils in Wales to become independent and confident Welsh speakers through the statutory education system.
I am pleased the report shows that there is broad support for the ambition and objectives outlined in the White Paper. Based on that support, I can confirm my intention to press ahead and introduce a Bill that will address the policy objectives outlined in the White Paper.
The concept of describing Welsh language proficiency levels and of continuous improvement to transform outcomes will be central to the Bill. Describing Welsh proficiency levels along this ‘continuum’ will mean learners, teachers, parents and employers will have a common understanding of the journey towards becoming Welsh speakers.
We are continuing to work with our stakeholders as this project develops. The focus of the work in the next phase is to gather further information on the costs and impacts of our proposals taking into account the impact that will be on our education workforce. This element is crucial as we develop the Bill to introduce into Senedd in this legislative year, that is before this Summer recess.