Welsh Language Commissioner says Welsh still needs more confidence.
People celebrate Welsh Language Rights Day on December 7th.This was a day to celebrate their language services organisations provide and the rights that people have to use this language.
The Government and several organizations, including Cardiff University posted videos on twitter to celebrate and support the day. Appeals more Welsh speakers and learners make the most of their rights.
Aled Roberts, Welsh Language Commissioner said: “Although this is a day to celebrate, but then if completely ignoring the rights of Welsh language speakers throughout the year, it would be a bit of a failure in my mind.”
He believed that the most important reason why the Welsh choose to use English more was the lack of confidence for their welsh language, and particularly amongst young people.
“I know of particularly amongst young Welsh speakers who may have been through Welsh medium schools, but don’t speak well naturally at home and another place.”
David Jones tries to speak Welsh with as many people as he can. “Sometimes I’ll speak Welsh by chance without considering if people can speak Welsh or not,” said the 86-year-old retired police officer from Swansea.
Aled Roberts believes that if we want more Welsh people to be able to use Welsh in public, we also need to provide a better quality and accessible language service.
This isn’t a case of just recruiting new staff, it’s also cases of recognizing the staff that speaks Welsh and ensuring that they have the confidence to use Welsh in the workplace.
In a situation where, Welsh speakers were not able to use their own language in the conduct of business, that’s changed now. But like Alex Roberts said it’s not going to change overnight.