Ms Meri Huws:

Diolch yn fawr. Bore da.
I thank the joint committee for giving me the opportunity to address it and reiterate the kind words about the visit to Wales which we enjoyed. I think I followed in the committee's wake as I heard about all of the meetings it had with various individuals, including the First Minister.
I am the Welsh language commissioner. In many ways, I am an infant compared to the Irish Language Commissioner who has been in place for ten years. The role of Welsh language commissioner was established not quite three years ago, as a consequence of a piece of language legislation, the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011, one of the first pieces of legislation produced following the devolution of powers to Wales. It is a very new role but one which builds on the strong tradition of language planning in Wales and the work of the Welsh Language Board which was established under the 1993 Westminster legislation.
I would like to share some messages which have become very clear to me. The committee is at a very interesting time in terms of Irish language legislation which it is considering amending. I see this as a wonderful opportunity for it to set a pattern for the future. I will raise some issues and questions. I have examined the proposed heads in the documentation and draw the attention of the committee to some lessons I have learned, of which the first and probably most important which has become apparent to me as Welsh language commissioner is that it is dangerous to leave the language in a policy silo. If one sees the language as something which is absolutely discrete and it is dealt with solely as such, there is danger. That approach gives status to the language, but it also means that as one plans for economic, social, employment, education and health policy, it sits outside the debate. In Wales it has been and continues to be critical for us that we integrate consideration of one of the official languages we use into all policy debates. That is a key issue for me as commissioner. As we look at planning and health legislation, it is key that I ask how the language has been considered in the policy proposal, decision or legislation. That is a key message to share with the committee as it considers new or amending legislation in terms of how it can use the opportunity to integrate the Irish language into the mainstream of policy and politics. That is something that I have learned is critical. If one allows the language to sit in a box with "Irish Language" written on the front which is opened occasionally and then shut again, that will not mean productive policy decisions will be made.
The second issue is current in Ireland.

The Welsh language is seen as a work based skill. How do we ensure that the Welsh language is seen by employers in the public, voluntary and business sectors as a strength of the workforce? We have invested in Welsh medium education in Wales, just as Ireland is investing in Irish medium education. How do we ensure a strong flow of young people from the school setting to the workplace? I would argue this is critical across Wales. It is no longer an issue solely for the traditional Welsh speaking communities; it presents significant challenges and opportunities in the context of our large centres of population. I work in Cardiff on a daily basis. It is critical that we have bilingual and Welsh language skills in workplaces in Cardiff, Swansea and Wrexham. There is a national challenge for us in Wales to ensure that employers recognise the language as a workplace skill and that they do so in a meaningful way, in terms of planning their workforce for the future and recognising their future needs.

As with all good Welsh sermons, there are three headings to my comments. I will address the third heading very briefly. In Wales we have a tradition of language schemes. I am aware that Ireland has language schemes as a consequence of the legislation introduced here. Since the Welsh Language Act 1993, Wales has in the region of 600, most of which are statutory, although some voluntary. While recognising the importance of language schemes in locating language as part of the fabric of Wales, the revised legislation reflects the fact that each language scheme is different. For the citizen wishing to access Welsh language services, the experience can be very different from organisation to organisation. As a consequence of recognising that we need to place the citizen or service user at the core of the relationship, we are moving away from language schemes and towards statutory standards for public sector organisations, many third sector and voluntary organisations and, over time, some business organisations. Rather than having that wonderful tapestry of language schemes, all of which are different, we are moving towards the consistency of statutory standards which will be imposed on organisations over time. The first set of standards will issue in early 2015 and I am certain these standards will be of interest to the committee. The first standards will be imposed on the Welsh Government, the 22 local authorities and the three national parks. By April or May 2015 we will start on a journey whereby Welsh language schemes are set aside for statutory standardised requirements governing service delivery, policy making, internal operations, promotion of the language and evidence keeping.

It is an interesting time for this committee to examine Irish legislation and consider the future of language schemes. I understand it is considering extending language schemes from three years to seven years. I may have a view on that. The question arises from our experience in Wales of how one secures consistency in a language scheme structure.

Language schemes have changed the face of service delivery in Wales. Done well, they change the face of service delivery. We are moving along in that journey which may be of interest to the committee.

As a language commissioner, I have gained great benefit from talking to other countries. When committee members were in Wales, we discussed the fact that there was an International Association of Language Commissioners, of which the Irish commissioner and I are members. There are only ten members. I glean great benefit from examining what happens in other jurisdictions, particularly Canada, where they have attempted to place the citizen at the heart of the relationship with the language. A citizen does not have to ask for a service in his or her language but is offered it.

Diolch yn fawr. I thank members for listening and hope I have given them a flavour of some of the issues on which we touch in Wales. I could talk for hours about the Welsh experience, but I do not think members want that on a very busy day.