Uncertainty in Ceredigion over language assessments

Cyhoeddwyd gan bethanwilliams ar Llun, Gorff 6th am 10:53 yb

Ceredigion members of Cymdeithas yr Iaith have welcomed the fact that Ceredigion Ceredigion Council has voted to keep a condition requiring language impact assessments of specific developments. The campaigners also called on the Welsh Government to provide clearer planning guidelines.

Planning legislation was passed recently that establishes the Welsh language a statutory consideration but the Government has not yet issued guidelines to explain how to implement the new law.

In the letter, Hywel Griffiths, chair of the organisation's Ceredigion branch, says:
"The fact that Ceredigion's Cabinet and the full Council have agreed to keep the policy is evidence, at first hand, of the importance of assessing the impact of development on the Welsh language and communities locally .... The County Council has been put in a situation where it could face legal costs if the need for a language impact assessment is challenged, as the national TAN20 policy says that there is no need to assess the impact of [specific] developments on the Welsh language.
"We therefore believe that the Government needs to release new guidelines to assist local authorities in light of the legal changes which take effect through the recent Planning Bill."

The DM01 policy, which will remain the same as a result of the decision, requires assessing the impact of specific developments on the language. This is contrary to national planning technical advice - TAN20 - and council officers have warned that there is no certainty the council's decision to keep the policy is legal.


Hywel Griffiths added:
"Had the Government given clear guidance on the language in planning in the first place, through their recent Planning Bill, Ceredigion Council would not have to be in a position where it could face legal costs if challenged on language impact assessments. "