Legislation Committee No. 5

Proposed National Assembly for Wales (Legislative Competence) (Welsh Language) Order 2009

Consultation Responses

IG1(i) Llewelyn Rhys, Cardiff

Should the National Assembly for Wales be able to make laws:

1 on the promotion and use of the Welsh Language?

Yes - definitely. Welsh is spoken in Wales by the people of Wales. What rational exists or justification is there to allow a Parliament in another country the rights to pass laws, or decide not to pass laws, in regard to our nation language? The National Assembly is the most democratically elected body in Wales and therefore better reflects the views of its citizens as a national unit.

2 on which services the public should be able to receive bilingually?

All public provided services; all utility provision services (including IT and telecommunications) and all public and essential services that are sub contracted to third parties. Policing and legal services and processes should be offered bilingually. There also need to equality of service where it is as easy to be dealt with through the medium of Welsh as it is through the medium of English.

3 on the freedom of persons to use the Welsh language with each other?

This is national and human rights issue - the rights of people to speak their native language with each other wherever they may be in Wales (or even beyond). It would be difficult for any person, company or institution to justify denying this self evident right