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<h1 class="gmail-section-theme-background-indicator gmail-publication-font">Revealed: Language minister's request to civil servants on how to 'sell' controversial health policy</h1><p>Campaigners have accused Eluned Morgan of being 'weak', but the Welsh Government described the criticism as 'nonsense'</p><div class="gmail-iya-info"><div class="gmail-article-information"><div class="gmail-author-information-container"><span class="gmail-author-label">By</span><div class="gmail-author"><a class="gmail-publication-theme" href="https://www.dailypost.co.uk/authors/hywel-trewyn/">Hywel Trewyn</a></div></div><ul class="gmail-time-info"><li><time class="gmail-date-published" datetime="2018-05-03T09:47:39Z"></time>10:47, 3 MAY 2018</li><li><span>Updated</span><time class="gmail-date-updated" datetime="2018-05-03T09:50:50Z"></time>10:50, 3 MAY 2018</li></ul></div><span class="gmail-p">..</span><form class="gmail-iya-postcode-search"> <input class="gmail-iya-postcode-new"> </form></div><div class="gmail-article-wrapper"><div class="gmail-content-column gmail-p402_hide"><div><section class="emerging-test-2 gmail-style-1"></section></div></div></div><div><section class="emerging-test-2 gmail-style-1"><div class="gmail-iya-test-wrapper"><div class="gmail-iya-test"><div class="gmail-iya-info"><form class="gmail-iya-postcode-search"></form> </div></div></div></section></div><div style="transition: background 0.2s linear 0s;">
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<span class="gmail-video-headline gmail-publication-font">The Welsh language <strong>in numbers </strong></span>
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minister for the Welsh language asked civil servants for advice on how
to “sell” a policy that weakened patients’ rights to receive treatment
in Welsh.</p> <p> Eluned Morgan believed that proposals to deprive people of the right to <a href="https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/youve-keep-your-toes-says-14550491">hospital consultations</a> in Welsh would lead to criticism. </p><div id="gmail-div-gpt-ad-vip-slot" class="gmail-gpt gmail-in-article" style="height:8px;max-height:8px"><div id="gmail-google_ads_iframe_/5293/dailypost.co.uk/news_2__container__" style="border:0pt none;margin:auto;text-align:center;width:8px"></div></div> <p>But the minister continued with the policy, which was passed by the Assembly in March.</p> <p> A limited right for patients to receive face-to-face health care <a href="https://www.dailypost.co.uk/business/appetite-welsh-speakers-employers-across-14544690">services in Welsh</a> was not included, despite a cross-party committee report demanding it and the measure appearing in draft regulations. </p> <p>Language
campaigners have accused Ms Morgan of being “weak” and the civil
servants of having an agenda “to weaken people’s language rights”.</p> <p>But the Welsh Government described the criticism as "complete nonsense".</p> <p>The language standards place a duty on health boards to provide some services in Welsh.</p> <p> In a document released following a Freedom of Information request by pressure group <a href="https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/incomers-welcome-packs-urge-learn-14594845">Cymdeithas yr Iaith</a>
, Ms Morgan seeks the advice of civil servants on how to justify
removing a limited right to receive clinical consultations in Welsh from
the regulations. </p> <figure class="gmail-in-article-image">
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<img alt="Baroness Morgan feels NFU Cymru should be adopting an unequivocal position on Britain's EU membership. The union is consulting its membership first before arriving at a decision" src="https://i2-prod.dailypost.co.uk/incoming/article10948249.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/WA5652193.jpg">
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<span class="gmail-caption">Eluned Morgan</span>
<span class="gmail-credit"> (Image: Richard Swingler)</span>
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</figure> <p>She asked: “So I want to be clear: if a little old
90-year-old lady from Gwynedd who speaks poor English goes to hospital
and is about to have a complicated operation, she cannot ‘legally’ ask
for someone to explain to her in Welsh what is happening, and what we
are offering is that the Health Board makes plans so that they can set
out to what extent they will be able to carry out clinical consultations
in Welsh 5 years from now, which presumably could say that they still
won’t be able to. (I think this is quite a tough sell! Any ideas?)”</p> <p>Heledd
Gwyndaf, chair of Cymdeithas yr Iaith, said: “These papers will shock
many people who are under the impression that the Welsh Government
supports the Welsh language.</p> <p>“We are less surprised, because we know that the civil service’s agenda is to weaken people’s language rights.</p> <p>“What
we see is a weak minister who, instead of challenging the regressive
direction of civil servants and showing leadership on the language, asks
them to help her justify steps that will deprive the most vulnerable of
their language rights.</p> <p>“This
is what has happened with language rights in the health service, and
that’s their intention with the proposed Welsh Language Bill.</p> <p>“The
minister is acting as the voice of the establishment, which wants to
weaken the language rights of ordinary people, instead of speaking up
for the people who want to see their rights protected and increased.</p> <figure class="gmail-in-article-image">
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<img alt="Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg chair Heledd Gwyndaf says she'll go to jail instead of pay TV licence in protest at non-devolved Welsh language TV" src="https://i2-prod.dailypost.co.uk/incoming/article13055097.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/Heledd.jpg">
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<span class="gmail-caption">Heledd Gwyndaf</span>
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</figure> <p>“That’s what’s behind these shocking comments about an older person’s rights to healthcare in Welsh.</p> <p>“This
shows that the minister and her civil servants knew what they were
doing – they were depriving vulnerable people of their language rights.</p> <p>“Now
that these papers have come to light, the Government must revisit the
Health Standards and their plans to weaken Welsh language legislation.</p><div id="gmail-div-gpt-ad-in-article-slot" class="gmail-gpt gmail-in-article" style="height:250px;max-height:250px"><div id="gmail-google_ads_iframe_/5293/dailypost.co.uk/news_4__container__" style="border:0pt none;margin:auto;text-align:center;width:300px;height:250px"></div></div> <p>“Instead
of meekly following the lead of her civil servants, the minister should
listen to those who support the interests of the Welsh language, not
powerful institutions and companies.”</p> <p>A Welsh Government
spokesperson said: “This is complete nonsense. The Minister’s comments
demonstrated the intense scrutiny of the Welsh Language Standards prior
to their publication.</p> <p>“This underlines the difficulties of
balancing the rights of individuals to receive services in Welsh against
the practical consideration of delivery of health services in a complex
environment where there is already an issue of recruitment.”</p><br clear="all"><div><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature">=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+<br><br> Harold F. Schiffman<br><br>Professor Emeritus of <br> Dravidian Linguistics and Culture <br>Dept. of South Asia Studies <br>University of Pennsylvania<br>Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305<br><br>Phone: (215) 898-7475<br>Fax: (215) 573-2138 <br><br>Email: <a href="mailto:haroldfs@gmail.com" target="_blank">haroldfs@gmail.com</a><br><a href="http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/" target="_blank">http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/</a> <br><br>-------------------------------------------------</div>
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