Jeremy Miles MS, Minister for Education and Welsh Language
Today, I’m announcing the publication of the Cymraeg 2050 Action Plan for 2022-23. This document describes how we’ll continue to implement the objectives contained in our strategy Cymraeg 2050: A million Welsh speakers during the 2022-23 financial year.
The Action Plan also reflects the steps set out in the Cymraeg 2050 Work Programme for 2021-2026, which was published in July 2021, as well as our Programme for Government and the Co-operation Agreement. It outlines the work the Welsh Government will undertake during the sixth Senedd term to deliver against the two main targets, as follows:
- The number of Welsh speakers to reach 1 million by 2050.
- The percentage of the population that speak Welsh daily, and can speak more than just a few words of Welsh, to increase from 10 per cent (in 2013–15) to 20 per cent by 2050.
In publishing this Plan for 2022-23, we must acknowledge that the world has changed significantly since the launch of Cymraeg 2050: the United Kingdom has left the European Union and COVID-19 is still with us. This all presents various challenges in terms of our language, and also a number of opportunities that we will want to take advantage of in future. We intend to respond to the changes that occur around us and make the most of every new opportunity to deliver our language strategy.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is expected to publish the results of the 2021 Census in relation to the Welsh language between spring 2022 and spring 2023. Once published, we will be analysing the results in detail and will update the statistical trajectory published as part of the Cymraeg 2050 strategy. We will also be reviewing our priorities as required. But our aim will remain the same – to work together to reach a million Welsh speakers and to double the daily use of our language.