Gwrthwynebu
Ail Gynllun Datblygu Lleol Adneuo Diwygiedig Sir Gaerfyrddin
ID sylw: 5903
Derbyniwyd: 12/04/2023
Ymatebydd: Cllr. Ken Howell
Cydymffurfio â’r gyfraith? Heb nodi
Cadarn? Heb nodi
Observations:
• Cyngor Sir Gâr’s Notice of Motion identifies the whole county as an area of linguistic sensitivity and as such should be recognised as a positive material consideration in rural areas.
• In reality, the Plan does not acknowledge the importance of small rural communities in its safeguarding and enhancement of the Welsh Language. Many of our rural villages are the strongholds of first-language Welsh-speakers and form the foundation of Welsh language and
culture throughout the county. Welsh speakers are concentrated in these areas, but the ability of young families to live and work within these communities is limited by the Plan and other regulatory factors.
• The Plan addresses two aspects of Welsh-language safeguarding:
a) It requires assessments on the impact of developments on the Welsh language;
b) It provides for activities, facilities and education which promote the Welsh language;
• The Plan does not provide for sensitive development within the small community strongholds of the language. Welsh-speakers who cannot build or buy within their villages, or in the surrounding areas, cannot support the language in their native communities.
• Local people may have access to land which would reduce costs and make the building of their own home viable. Proportionate development on private land should be made possible where appropriate.
• Rural Welsh-language villages need proactive policies to offer accommodation in the community – both to young families in need of Affordable Housing and to those requiring market housing.
• Assessments of the likely effects of the LDP on the Welsh language will depend on the detail available and be data-led.
• Pre-planning Welsh-language Assessments are appropriate for larger developments in service centres and towns, however, external assessments do not evidence the actual prosperity of the language in small villages and communities.
• Welsh-language impact assessments are commissioned by the applicant and may not always be independent.
• A reversal of thought is required so that the needs of the Welsh language influences the LDP rather than the LDP attempting to react to perceived needs.
• The data on Welsh-speakers in Carmarthenshire has not yet been based on the 2021 Census and is out of date.
• There is very little planning guidance attached to the Welsh Government policy to achieve one million Welsh speakers by 2050.
• While the CYMRAEG 2050 policy calls for strengthening the relationship between language planning and land use planning, Welsh Government’s own planning policies make this impossible.
CONSIDERATIONS:
1. To recognise the Linguistic Sensitivity of the whole county and the potential of rural communities to increase the number of Welsh-speakers if supported proactively through the LDP.
2. To move from assessing impact to providing positive measures to develop Welsh-language strongholds.
3. To acknowledge that strict controls on market housing in rural areas harms Welsh-language communities.
4. Where development is evidenced through local need, to balance the potential visual harm to rural areas against the potential benefit to language and culture.
5. To provide a body to conduct Welsh-language impact assessments which is independent of the applicant and the Local Planning Authority.
6. To re-assess Welsh-language impact policies as soon as the 2021 Census data is available.
7. To recognise the need for Welsh Government to explore new approaches to planning in rural areas in order to enable local Welsh Language Strategies to be implemented and to enable CYMRAEG 2050 to be a realistic possibility.
Amend Plan
Whilst I fully agree with the proposals submitted by my colleague and fellow Councillor Carys Jones, I wish to submit that the allocation proposed for Drefach Felindre is limited and inadequate for the next ten years. In particular, the allocation of only three houses on the Waugilwen road should be doubled to six, which would accommodate future expansion of the village.
Submissions by Carys Jones - dealt with in another representation
The LDP recognises the whole county as an area of linguistic sensitivity and the policies within it seek to maximise opportunities for the Welsh language to thrive and allow appropriate small scale development in rural communities as well as opportunities to deliver housing specifically for local need and to meet affordable housing need. Further evidence has been produced in support of the Plan which considers the 2021 Census data.