Language campaigners have launched a petition calling for the Welsh Government to ensure that people have rights to access services in Welsh in the private sector, five years after language legislation was passed.
The news comes as the Language Commissioner sets out the timetable for local government, national parks and the Welsh Government to comply with the new Language Standards. The Welsh Language Measure empowers the Government and the Commissioner to place duties on public bodies, as well as some voluntary organisations and private companies such as telephone, transport and energy companies.
Last week the First Minister confirmed that people cannot expect language rights from hundreds of bodies in the private sector, such as Arriva Trains Wales, and Network Rail, before the Assembly Elections in May of next year. This year, over two hundred bodies were left out of the programme to create language rights, the Welsh Language Standards, including bus and train companies. The statement by the First Minister also confirms that companies such as those responsible for energy, transport and telecommunications, will not come under language legislation before the Assembly Elections.
Talking about the launch of their petition on the Assembly Website, Manon Elin, Cymdeithas' language rights spokesperson, said:
"It's very concerning, 5 years since the language law was passed, that the Commissioner and the Government haven't used all their powers. Hundreds of thousands of people are being deprived of Welsh language services every day - on the trains and busesand by phone and energy companies - because of their lack of action. The Welsh Language Measure was passed unanimously by the Assembly in 2010, so, by failing to act, the Commissioner is frustrating the democratic will of the people's representatives.That's why we have launched a petition demanding their promises are delivered.
"This does raise questions about the Commissioner's priorities - why delay creating rights to Welsh language services from train,bus, phone and energy companies? These are services which impact on the lives of hundreds of thousands of people every day. If the Government and Commissioner's priorities are promoting the use of Welsh, it stands to reason that they should move quickly to bring these companies under the Standards. The Commissioner has many questions to answer.
"The process of creating these new rights, through the Standards, needs to be expedited and simplified as well. The Welsh Language Measure needs to be amended by extending it to the rest of the private sector, including supermarkets and banks. That would mean better Welsh language services from the whole of the private and voluntary sector."
The petition on the Assembly website calls on the Welsh Government to introduce all the Language Standards to the National Assembly before the election in 2016, and to extend the Welsh Language Measure to include the rest of the private sector.