Language campaigners have called on the Education Minister to commit to expanding the work of the Welsh-medium education provider Coleg Cymraeg following the announcement this afternoon that will mean smaller cuts to the higher education sector than expected.

In a statement in the chamber this afternoon, the Finance Minister announced lower cuts to the Higher Education Funding Council than announced in the draft budget. In letters to the four parties in the Assembly before Christmas, Cymdeithas yr Iaith called for steps to ensure growth and the development of the Coleg Cymraeg. In a recent meeting between the language group and the First Minister, Carwyn Jones said he: "wants to see [the work of the Coleg Cymraeg] to continue [and to] grow".

In a letter to the Education Minister, Ffred Ffransis a member of Welsh language campaign group Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg says:

"We are pleased that the final budget attempts to do more to protect universities' budgets. In a recent meeting with the First Minister, he was completely clear with us that he's fully committed to the Coleg Cymraeg and wanted its work continue and grow. We ask you to ensure that your remit letter to the funding council ensures there are extra resouces to the expand the Coleg's work. After all, the Coleg is key to delivering the right to study in Welsh in higher education - and we hope it can also increasingly do that in further education over the years to come.

"The Coleg Cymraeg is not another small player in the higher education market to be dependent on the whim of the Funding Council. Instead we call on you to develop its role to be a progressive body which will combine further and higher education in order to genuinely serve the needs of young people through the medium of Welsh."