THE Welsh Government has been called upon to urgently outline how it intends to arrest the decline in the prevalence of Welsh speakers in many of the country’s Welsh-speaking communities.

Gwynedd, who along with Anglesey and Ceredigion, has the highest proportion of people over the age of three who say they can speak Welsh.

However, new figures which have been uncovered by the Welsh Conservatives, outline a significant fall in those who say they can speak the language over the last decade.

Between 2006 and 2016, there has been a 3.7 percentage fall in Gwynedd.

Shadow secretary for the Welsh language, Suzy Davies AM, said: “These worrying figures emphasise a decline in the prominence of Welsh speakers in many of the language’s traditional heartland areas.

“To stem this trend, the Welsh Government must overhaul the strategy for Welsh language in education, helping all children in Wales to become confident in communicating in Welsh from the earliest age and encouraging them to use it outside the education environment."

Simon Brooks, who is a town councillor in Porthmadog and secretary of the Dyfodol i’r Iaith group, said he believes the decline in the language is down to young people moving out of Gwynedd to find work.

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