Costau dwyieithrwydd

15 March 2022

Dear

ATISN 16111 - Total cost of Wales remaining bilingual

Thank you for your request which I received on 16 February.

You asked what is the cost to The Welsh Government and Welsh Businesses of having all communications in Welsh and English. You’ve also requested details on the number of people using Welsh on a daily basis now compared to 20 or 25 years ago.

Our response

I have structured my response below to reflect the different elements of your request.

To clarify, please note that we are only able to provide information in relation to the Welsh Government. We do not hold any information that relates to Welsh businesses.

1. Cost to The Welsh Government of having all communications in Welsh and English

We do not hold this information.

The Welsh Government is committed to complying with its legal duties, the Welsh Language Standards, to communicate with the people of Wales bilingually. This work is mainstreamed across the organisation, and is a part of the day-to-day work of staff. 

2. Cost to Welsh Businesses of having all communications in Welsh and English

We do not hold this information.

Businesses do not come under the Welsh language standards. Many businesses choose to work with the Welsh Language Commissioner and often develop their own Welsh language schemes.

Many businesses see communicating in Welsh with their customers as a totally natural way of working and it often becomes a powerful tool that contributes to the success of their business model.

3. The number of people using Welsh on a daily basis now compared to 20 or 25 years ago.

We don’t hold any information on the number of people using Welsh on a daily basis 20 or 25 years ago. However, we can provide the most recent data we hold.

The census does not gather any information regarding the daily use of Welsh. So our numbers are based on two different sources: the Welsh Language Use Survey and the National Survey for Wales.

The National Survey for Wales noted that 15.2% use Welsh daily for the year ending 30 September 2021. This is compared to 14.3% for the year ending March 2007, which is the earliest data available.

The Welsh Language Use Survey notes that the population aged three or older who speak Welsh daily in 2019-20 was 12%, unchanged from 2013-15.

Next steps

If you are dissatisfied with the Welsh Government’s handling of your request, you can ask for an internal review within 40 working days of the date of this response.  Requests for an internal review should be addressed to the Welsh Government’s Freedom of Information Officer at:

Information Rights Unit, 
Welsh Government,
Cathays Park, 
Cardiff, 
CF10 3NQ 

or Email: Freedom.ofinformation@gov.wales

Please remember to quote the ATISN reference number above.  

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner.  The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:  Information Commissioner’s Office,

Wycliffe House, 
Water Lane, 
Wilmslow, 
Cheshire, 
SK9 5AF.

However, please note that the Commissioner will not normally investigate a complaint until it has been through our own internal review process.

Yours sincerely