MPs to be allowed to speak Welsh in Parliament

New UK government plans will allow MPs to speak Welsh in parliamentary debates of the Welsh Grand Committee.

The changes will enable MPs to use the language when the Welsh Grand Committee, which meets occasionally to discuss issues relevant to Wales and includes its 40 MPs, convenes in Westminster.

Currently, MPs can only speak Welsh in the Welsh Affairs select committee.

The news comes after the UK government previously rejected calls to overturn rules prohibiting members from speaking Welsh.

Alun Cairns, Secretary of State for Wales, commented: “I am delighted that MPs will be able to participate in the Welsh Grand Committee through the medium of Welsh for the first time in Westminster. It is vitally important that the people of Wales are able to hear debates in both languages.

"I hope that MPs who can speak Welsh will choose to use this service in order to help promote the Welsh language across Parliament."

The UK Government has said: “The cost of the translation services – both interpreters and headsets – will be absorbed within Parliament’s existing budgets, meaning this change takes place at no extra cost to the taxpayer.”