English: Thank you very much, Llywydd. It's a privilege for me to open this discussion on a matter within my cultural responsibilities, and in so doing I use the Government time at the Assembly to celebrate the development of cultural institutions - important institutions - and also to give Assembly Members and the public the opportunity, following the publication of this report, to discuss its content further and to help us in the process, as Government, in collaboration with the museum to strengthen our national institutions. The national institutions dealing with heritage and history are institutions where, without being too nationalistic or romantic here, the heartbeat of the nation is to be heard, because these institutions offer a special experience for visitors to Wales, and they offer a sense of place and pride for communities in Wales. They are institutions that can be very useful in welcoming new arrivals and to explain the histories and the aspirations of people of Wales over the centuries, and also to offer experiences of history and evidence for people of all generations. National Museum Wales, as you know, has seven locations scattered across Wales, and this institution is a vital part of the work of providing cultural experiences on people's doorsteps almost, and the work of providing experiences also cares for our heritage. Apart from four visits to Llandudno, the place I have visited most since I came into this post is St Fagans, and the opportunity to revisit this location often recently has helped me to understand how much development and redevelopment has been made in supporting an investment of over £7 million by the Welsh Government. I was hugely impressed by the new facilities in St Fagans, and it's clear that there is a long history of very hard work, passion and commitment from everyone from the skilled historic buildings unit, through to the general director and all of the staff who are so enthusiastic. But, in the history of that institution, as with all institutions, there have been problems and there continue to be challenges. In response to the challenges and at the request of National Museum Wales itself, my predecessor, the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Infrastructure, Ken Skates, commissioned this independent report that we are discussing today back in 2016. The ambition was to find a way that the Welsh Government and National Museum Wales could work together more effectively. I'm very grateful to Dr Simon Thurley. I'm familiar with his work in English Heritage for many years. I'm very grateful to him for the responsibility he took for the review and the readable way that it was written. Indeed, it's unusually readable in my experience of reading public reports, even in the field of culture. The report has succeeded to discuss the strengths and weaknesses, to note the issues, to consider opportunities and to put forward ideas of how the museum can move forward in several different areas. As you see from reading the report, there are 17 recommendations. I don't want to discuss all of these individually, but I welcome all contributions directly on these recommendation.
Welsh: Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. Mae hi'n fraint ac yn bleser arbennig i mi i agor trafodaeth ar fater o fewn fy nghyfrifoldebau diwylliannol, ac wrth wneud hynny, defnyddio amser y Llywodraeth yn y Cynulliad i ddathlu datblygiad ein sefydliadau diwylliannol pwysig, a hefyd i roi cyfle i Aelodau Cynulliad ac i'r cyhoedd, yn dilyn cyhoeddi yr adroddiad, i drafod ei gynnwys ymhellach, a helpu ni yn y broses, fel Llywodraeth, o gydweithio â'r amgueddfa yn cryfhau ein sefydliadau cenedlaethol. Mae sefydliadau cenedlaethol sy'n ymwneud â threftadaeth a hanes yn sefydliadau ble mae, heb siarad yn rhy genedlaetholgar na rhamantaidd, curiad y galon i'w glywed, oherwydd y mae'r sefydliadau yma yn cynnig profiad arbennig i ymwelwyr â Chymru, ac yn cynnig ymdeimlad o falchder mewn lle i gymunedau Cymru. Maen nhw'n sefydliadau sydd yn gallu bod yn ddefnyddiol iawn i groesawu newydd-ddyfodiaid i esbonio hanes a dyheadau pobl Cymru dros y canrifoedd, a hefyd i gynnig ar yr un pryd brofiadau o hanes a thystiolaeth i bawb o bob cenhedlaeth. Mae gan Amgueddfa Cymru, fel y gwyddoch chi, saith o leoliadau ledled Cymru, ac mae'r sefydliadau yma yn rhan allweddol o'r gwaith o ddarparu profiadau diwylliannol ar garreg drws pobl bron, fel petai, a'r gwaith o ddarparu profiadau sydd ar yr un pryd yn gofalu am dreftadaeth. Ar wahân i bedwar ymweliad â Llandudno, y lle rwyf wedi treulio'r rhan fwyaf o amser ynddo fo o ran un lleoliad ers imi gael y swydd yma yw Sain Ffagan, ac mae'r cyfle i ailymweld â'r lle yna yn weddol aml yn ddiweddar wedi helpu imi sylweddoli gymaint o ddatblygiad ac ailddatblygiad sydd wedi ei wneud, gan gefnogi buddsoddiad o dros £7 miliwn gan Lywodraeth Cymru. Fe ges i argraff gref iawn o'r cyfleusterau newydd yna, ac mae'n amlwg bod yna hanes hir o waith caled a chwbl ymroddedig gan bawb o'r uned adeiladau hanesyddol grefftus iawn sydd yno, drwodd i'r cyfarwyddwr cyffredinol a'r holl staff sydd mor frwd. Ond, wrth gwrs, fe fu yna yn hanes y sefydliad yna, fel ym mhob sefydliad, broblemau ac mae yna o hyd heriadau. Mewn ymateb i heriadau ac ar gais gan Amgueddfa Cymru ei hun, comisiynodd fy rhagflaenydd, yr Ysgrifennydd Cabinet dros Economi a Seilwaith, Ken Skates, yr adolygiad annibynnol yma rydym yn ei drafod heddiw yn 2016. A'r awydd oedd i geisio darganfod ffordd y gallai Llywodraeth Cymru a'r amgueddfa gydweithio yn fwy effeithiol. Rwy'n ddiolchgar i Dr Simon Thurley - rwy'n gyfarwydd â'i waith o yn English Heritage ers blynyddoedd. Rwy'n ddiolchgar iawn iddo am y cyfrifoldeb gymerodd o am yr adolygiad, a'r modd darllenadwy y cafodd o ei ysgrifennu - yn wir, anarferol o ddarllenadwy yn fy mhrofiad i o ddarllen adroddiadau cyhoeddus, hyd yn oed ym maes diwylliant. Mae'r adroddiad wedi llwyddo i bwyso a mesur y cryfderau a'r gwendidau, i nodi'r problemau, i ystyried cyfleoedd a chyflwyno syniadau i ni am sut y gall yr amgueddfa symud ymlaen mewn nifer o'r meysydd yma. Fel y gwelwch chi o ddarllen yr adroddiad, mae yna 17 o argymhellion. Nid wyf am drafod pob un yn unigol, ond mi groesawaf sylwadau fan hyn ar lafar neu yn uniongyrchol eto.