I recently became embroiled in a generally civil debate about Welsh language policies following the posting to the County Times Facebook page of an article relating to the new Welsh medium primary school in Welshpool.

I wish to state from the outset that Welsh is a beautiful language – ‘The language of the Gods’, as my Grandfather taught me – and that without exception all of my relatives in Wales, including those in north Montgomeryshire, are fluent Welsh speakers by ancient lineage.

My grandfather was the oldest living Welshman for three years, and the oldest living Welsh speaker for seven years, before his death in his 109th year in 2012. In no way do I, or would I, wish harm on the Welsh language or Welsh national identity.

In this Facebook debate, where I questioned the scale of funds being put into Welsh-medium education in Powys, I was however told that both I and the party I am spokesperson for in the County (Reform UK) are ‘divisive’, seeking to ‘divide’ people and generate hate against Welsh speakers.

It is unfortunate that language such as this is being used by persons connected to Plaid Cymru, the Welsh nationalist party.

In a democracy (we do live in one, apparently) it is perfectly legitimate to question funding priorities, not least when said funds are increasingly scarce.

 

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For instance, could/should Wales divert funding from expanding Welsh-medium education in areas with very few households where Welsh is spoken, into maintaining provision of primary education facilities in areas of extreme rurality?

Should expanding Welsh Medium education mean closure of our village primary schools, even if these primary schools are teaching in English?

Second, I find it acutely ironic that persons connected to Plaid accuse the Reform Party of being ‘divisive’ when it is they who advocate for schools which literally separate young children into different schools based on their language of communication.

Could one imagine a local authority in Birmingham filtering out those who spoke Polish from those who spoke Urdu at home, and placing them in different schools?

The effect would be a cultural ‘apartheid’ totally at odds with the values of comprehensive education, an idea based on all children in the same community being educated together irrespective of their race, creed, or a child’s social or cultural background.

There are plenty of ways the Welsh language can be promoted cheaply without resorting to abandoning the comprehensive system of education.

For instance, as in many parts of Wales, there can exist a Welsh and English stream within the same comprehensive school, with no abandonment of the values of comprehensive education.

Powys could fund summer schools or Saturday classes for young Welsh learners; for adults (surely the category of person with least access to learning the language) evening classes could be expanded.

Democratic politics is all about civilised debate and exchange within the law. I very much hope that the forthcoming general election will see the candidates of all parties engage constructively and calmly as we lay before voters our views on the problems facing the county, before the electorate goes away and casts its judgement.

Oliver Lewis

Reform Party Spokesperson

Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr Constituency