S4C - Llythyr Agored i Brif Weinidog Prydain

Annwyl Y Gwir Anrhydeddus David Cameron AS,

Mae'r iaith Gymraeg yn drysor diwylliannol i bobl Cymru, ynghyd â siaradwyr a chefnogwyr y Gymraeg ar draws gwledydd Prydain a thu hwnt. Fel y gwyddoch, S4C yw'r unig sianel deledu Gymraeg yn y byd, ac mae'n gwneud cyfraniad amhrisiadwy i ffyniant y Gymraeg, iaith fyw hynaf Prydain.

Mae S4C eisoes wedi derbyn toriadau anferthol, gyda chwtogiad o 93% yn yr arian grant mae'n ei derbyn gan y Llywodraeth: arbedion o ran gwariant cyhoeddus sydd llawer iawn yn uwch na nifer o wasanaethau eraill. Dywedwyd wrth wneud y toriadau hyn bum mlynedd yn ôl y byddai unrhyw doriad pellach yn golygu na fyddai'r darlledwr yn gallu parhau. Bellach, mae Llywodraeth Prydain yn cyfrannu llai na £7 miliwn y flwyddyn i gyllideb S4C gyda gweddill yr arian yn dod o'r ffi drwydded. Mae'r grant bach hwn yn un o'r ychydig ffyrdd mae Llywodraeth Prydain yn cefnogi'r Gymraeg yn uniongyrchol.

Cafwyd addewid yn eich maniffesto Cymreig y byddwch chi fel Llywodraeth yn 'diogelu' cyllideb S4C. Rydym yn croesawu hynny, ac yn gofyn i chi anrhydeddu'r addewid hwnnw yn yr adolygiad gwariant a gyhoeddir yn fuan.

Credwn ymhellach fod achos cryf dros gynyddu cyllideb S4C er mwyn ehangu ei gwaith ar ragor o blatfformau. Dros y degawdau diwethaf, bu twf aruthrol yn nifer y gwasanaethau sydd i'w cael yn Saesneg, ar deledu a radio ac ar-lein, ond ers sefydlu S4C ym 1982 dim ond un gwasanaeth teledu ac un gwasanaeth radio sydd i'w cael yn Gymraeg. Gofynnwn i chi ystyried sut y gall y Llywodraeth gefnogi ehangu presenoldeb y Gymraeg ar ragor o lwyfannau cyfryngol, gan gynnwys y syniad o sefydlu ail wasanaeth er mwyn hybu defnydd y Gymraeg ymysg pobl ifanc.

Yn gywir,

Benjamin Zephaniah, Huw Stephens, Caryl Parry Jones, Dafydd Iwan, Dewi Pws, Jamie Bevan, Carwyn Ellis (Colorama), Lleuwen Tangi, Manon Steffan Ros, Steffan Alun (digrifwr), Cleif Harpwood, Alun Llwyd (recordiau Turnstile), Liam Ford (Crys), Siân Lloyd, Rhodri Rhys (digrifwr), Arthur Emyr, Gareth Bonello, Casi Wyn, Ifan Davies (Sŵnami), Nigel Owens.

Open Letter to the Prime Minister

Dear Rt. Hon. David Cameron MP,

The Welsh language is a cultural treasure of the people of Wales, as well as those who speak and support the language across the nations of Britain and beyond. As you know, S4C is the only Welsh-language television channel in the world, and it makes a priceless contribution to ensuring a prosperous future for Welsh, the oldest living language in Britain.

S4C has already been subject to enormous cuts, with a reduction of 93% in the grant money it receives directly from the Government: savings in terms of public expenditure that are much higher than a number of other services. When these cuts were made five years ago, it was said that any further cuts would mean that the work of the broadcaster would not be able to continue. Currently, the UK Government contributes less than £7 million a year to S4C's budget, with the remainder of its finances coming from the licence fee. This small grant is one of the few ways the UK Government supports the Welsh language directly.

Your Welsh Manifesto pledged that you as a Government would "safeguard" S4C's budget. We welcome that, and ask you to honour that pledge in the spending review that will soon be published.

Furthermore, we believe that there is a strong case for increasing S4C's budget in order to expand its work on additional platforms. Over the past decades, there has been an enormous growth in the number of services available in English, on television, radio and online, but since S4C was established in 1982 only one television and one radio service have been available in Welsh. We ask you to consider how the Government can support expanding the presence of Welsh across a greater number of media platforms, including the idea of establishing a second service in order to promote the use of Welsh amongst young people.

Yours,

Benjamin Zephaniah, Huw Stephens, Caryl Parry Jones, Dafydd Iwan, Dewi Pws, Jamie Bevan, Carwyn Ellis (Colorama), Lleuwen Tangi, Manon Steffan Ros, Steffan Alun (comedian), Cleif Harpwood, Alun Llwyd (recordiau Turnstile), Liam Ford (Crys), Siân Lloyd, Rhodri Rhys (comedian), Arthur Emyr, Gareth Bonello, Casi Wyn, Ifan Davies (Sŵnami), Nigel Owens.