The Welsh Government's Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government, Jayne Bryant, failed to commit to acting on any new housing policies to ensure the future of Welsh communities before the next Senedd election in 2026 during a scrutiny session in the Senedd today (Wednesday, 18 June).
She was questioned on the issue by Cefin Campbell, Plaid Cymru Member of the Senedd for Mid and West Wales, who pointed out that there are several policy areas that are yet to be implemented since the end of the termination of the between the Welsh Government and Plaid Cymru. Among these were the recommendations of the Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities, published in August last year.
In Carmarthenshire, Mr. Campbell’s home county, the percentage of those who speak the language has fallen from 50.3% in 2001, to 43.9% in 2011, to 39.9% in 2021.
In response, Cefin Campbell MS said:
"It was disappointing to hear today that the Welsh Government is not taking the crisis in housing affordability in our Welsh-speaking communities seriously and will not be building on the work that has already been done.
"The lack of access for families and young people to houses to buy or rent continues to drive them from their communities, undermining the Welsh language in its traditional heartlands. This is unfortunately true across my region, from Carmarthenshire, to Ceredigion and to Gwynedd in the north.
"More and more delay is not an option, and action must be taken soon in order to ensure the future of our Welsh-speaking communities and the language as a living one."