While giving support to the Welsh Government's proposal to allow local authorities to purchase houses and rent them back to homeowners who are experiencing mortgage repayment problems, Cymdeithas yr Iaith have called on the government to 'go the extra mile' and establish a 'right to rent' policy.

Iestyn ap Rhobert, spokesperson of Cymdeithas' 'save our communities' campaign said:"For Welsh communities to survive, local residents must have access to schemes such as being proposed by the Welsh Assembly Government so that they can continue to live in their communities. Many however will not have been able to afford to purchase houses in the first place.""We call on the Welsh Assembly Government to go the extra mile and enable local authorities to purchase houses - which are currently going for lower prices than usual - and rent them to local people. For welsh communities to survive we need to establish the 'Right to Rent' rather than the 'Right to Buy' principle."Angharad Clwyd, Cymdeithas yr Iaith's organiser in Dyfed said:"Ensuring these basic rights will allow local people in Carmarthenshire to stay in their own communities where house prices have soared and are out of their reach, and will be a great help for Welsh communities in the county."