Following a series of blows to Welsh-language funding, Dyfodol i’r Iaith are calling for more transparency over the cuts. In the past few weeks it has been announced that S4C would be facing cutbacks; that funding for the promotion of the Welsh language is to be reduced; and last week, we learnt of further significant cuts to the Welsh Books Council’s budget. Looking at the overall picture, the cumulative effect on the Welsh language and its culture is critical.

Dyfodol yr Iaith claims that the Welsh Government, according to its own figures is set to receive more money, not less, annually from London and that these cuts are unnecessary.

The situation presented by the Welsh Government to justify these cuts is therefore less than honest. While the Government claims they will receive less money, this is only justified on the basis of inflation: a rise of 3.6% is claimed, when, in reality, the level is much lower, being closer to 1%.

Elinor Jones, Dyfodol i’r Iaith’s President said: “The recent cuts are likely to have a highly detrimental effect on Welsh culture. The budget as it stands is pitifully low; a situation which shows a lack of respect towards the Welsh language, and one which means that any cutbacks would have an inordinate effect. The future of our language and culture is too weighty a mater to be pushed aside and buried with equivocal words.”

“ Dyfodol has already called for an emergency meeting with the First Minister, and we will be pressing further for this in the wake of these latest developments.”

Dyfodol i’r Iaith has called for an emergency meeting with the First Minister, Carwyn Jones, to explain the Government’s intention to cut spending on the Welsh language. This call comes in wake of the Government’s draft budget, which outlines the intention to cut £1.6 million (19%) from the Welsh language budget.

Although the Government has by now confirmed that additional funding will be available for Welsh in the community, what little spending there is on the Welsh language is still set to plunge.

According to Dyfodol, this cut totally undermines the Government’s commitment to the Welsh language, as this money has been earmarked for initiatives and projects which make a real difference to the language. Dyfodol i’r Iaith wishes to see an increase in funding to support new Welsh speakers of all ages to use the Welsh language within the very areas that are essential to its future; the home, the community, shops, businesses and social life.

The Government has managed to increase spending in several areas, but not on the Welsh language.

Heini Gruffudd, Dyfodol’s Chair said, “We can never reach the goal of a bilingual Wales without the Government’s enthusiastic support. We need far-reaching programmes to promote the use of the language and to increase the number of Welsh speakers. If we do not safeguard this essential element, any enforcement measures, such as the language standards, will become increasingly irrelevant.”

“We will be pushing for a meeting with the First Minister as soon as possible to secure a full explanation of the situation and to emphasise the importance of this funding to the growth of the Welsh language.”

On Monday November 23,representatives of the language organisations involved with the Gwynedd and Môn Housing and Planning Campaign Committee met with the officers and councillors responsible for the two counties’ Local Development Plan. The delegation included representation from Cylch yr Iaith), Dyfodol i’r Iaith, Canolfan Hanes Uwchgwyrfai and Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg.

The proposed plan to build almost 8,000 new homes has led to an outcry by the Campaign Committee, who are concerned that it will prove harmful to the Welsh language within the communities of both counties. They have highlighted the serious flaws in the Councils’ assessment of the Plan in relation to its impact on the Welsh language. The fundamental flaw, according to the organisations, being the fact that independent external expertise was not employed to assess the Welsh-language impact.

Following the meeting, the following statement was made by the Campaign Committee:

“Our concerns are based on the fate of Welsh as a community language within Gwynedd and Môn and the impact of the Local Development Plan on its situation. Suffice to say, the Welsh language faces the greatest crisis in its history, with the number of communities where over 70% of the population speak the language falling from 59 to 49 between 2001 and 2011. With the exception of one community in Conwy, all that remains of these communities are limited to Gwynedd and Môn.

“The Welsh Government’s guidelines for Local Authorities emphasise that the evidence used as a basis for the Local Development Plan has to be robust. We highlighted as part of the comments made in response to the consultation over 40 flaws, including absence of evidence, unsatisfactory evidence, unreliable evidence and inconsistencies.

“Our plea to Gwynedd and Môn Councils today is that the officers and councillors who are responsible for the Plan give fair and full considerations to our comments, rectify the flaws and see to it that it contains nothing that can have an adverse effect on the situation of the Welsh language within our communities. It is essential to ensure that housing and planning policy contribute to the strengthening of the language.”

At the end of January, the Committee responsible for the Plan will decide on responses to all the comments received during the consultation period, before a final version of the Plan is presented to the Welsh Government. A public inquiry will be held next year, and representatives of the Campaign Committee have registered their wish to contribute. The final version of the Plan will be adopted at the beginning of 2017.