Letter: Viewpoints - Well done to NHS for finally going bilingual.

Byline: Sian Lewis

HAVING read both articles published in the Echo with regards to the appointment of a Welsh Language Officer for Cardiff and the Vale NHS Trust, I would like to comment.

I would firstly wish to congratulate the NHS in Wales for seeing the light of day and appointing Welsh Language Officers across Wales to strengthen the provision of bilingual services for Welsh-speaking patients.

Here are some facts that Leonard Martin, Gareth Day and Gerald Wilson should consider; Every year pounds 3.7bn is spent on the NHS in Wales, the money given towards the Welsh language represents only 0.7% of the health budget (cash which would run out in two and a half days).

Spending between pounds 23,000 to pounds 31,000 per year on appointing a Welsh Language Officer will not make much difference to the shortage of beds, a cure for cancer or the long waiting lists for operations!

Why do people suggest it? Why do some elements of Welsh society seem desperate to humiliate their own culture?

Believe it or not, most non-Welsh speakers have far more respect for Welsh people prepared to fight for their language than those happy to see their own culture trampled underfoot.

The Welsh language is not only surviving because of legislation (has Gerald Wilson been living on the moon)? There has been huge growth within the Welsh Language in Cardiff over the past 10 years and more than half a million people speak the language in Wales.

Sian Lewis, Velindre Rd, Whitchurch, Cardiff