English: Can I just comment on the first point that the Member makes in relation to our ambitions for the education system in Wales? And I agree with her that the principle that underpins the higher education system in Wales is much more progressive than the ones that she was describing as happening over the border in terms of student finance. She will obviously know that every Welsh full-time undergraduate student receives a minimum of £1,000-worth of grant and additional support, regardless of where they choose to study in the UK, and we have a more progressive policy in relation to part-time study as well. I think a less remarked, or a less often spoken about, difference that we have in Wales as well is that the Welsh Government makes provision to cancel up to £1,500 of maintenance loan debt for each student that starts repayment. That's the only part of the UK that does that, and we're very proud of having a more progressive system of finance here in Wales. In relation to the point that she made about the loan threshold, which I made a written statement about in the last week or so, part of the challenge that we face here in Wales is that, whereas a lot of the powers sit in our hands in relation to student finance, the implementation of a different policy on the ground is not in our hands. That's a question for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs in many respects and other non-devolved bodies. And, when a policy decision is made, as it was in this case, at very short notice, it provides really no room to be able to respond to it in a different way here in Wales. She will have seen, though, in the last few days a range of other proposals that have come out from the UK Government in relation to student finance reform, and I have asked officials to work with Treasury officials and UK Government officials to see what better room for manoeuvre we can have in Wales so that we can make different choices here than those that are made in very different circumstances across the border.
Welsh: A gaf fi wneud sylwadau ar y pwynt cyntaf y mae'r Aelod yn ei wneud mewn perthynas â'n huchelgeisiau ar gyfer y system addysg yng Nghymru? Ac rwy'n cytuno â hi fod yr egwyddor sy'n sail i'r system addysg uwch yng Nghymru yn llawer mwy blaengar na'r hyn a ddywedai sy'n digwydd dros y ffin mewn perthynas â chyllid myfyrwyr. Mae'n amlwg y bydd yn gwybod bod pob myfyriwr israddedig amser llawn yng Nghymru yn cael gwerth o leiaf £1,000 o grant a chymorth ychwanegol, lle bynnag y dewisant astudio yn y DU, ac mae gennym bolisi mwy blaengar mewn perthynas ag astudio rhan-amser hefyd. Un gwahaniaeth llai amlwg, neu un sy'n cael ei drafod yn llai aml, sydd gennym yng Nghymru hefyd yw bod Llywodraeth Cymru yn gwneud darpariaeth i ganslo hyd at £1,500 o ddyled benthyciadau cynhaliaeth ar gyfer pob myfyriwr sy'n dechrau ad-dalu. Cymru yw'r unig ran o'r DU sy'n gwneud hynny, ac rydym yn falch iawn o gael system gyllido fwy blaengar yma yng Nghymru. Ar y pwynt a wnaeth am y trothwy benthyciadau, y gwneuthum ddatganiad ysgrifenedig amdano yn ystod yr wythnos neu ddwy ddiwethaf, rhan o'r her a wynebwn yma yng Nghymru, er bod llawer o'r pwerau yn ein dwylo ni mewn perthynas â chyllid myfyrwyr, yw nad yw'r gallu i weithredu polisi gwahanol ar lawr gwlad yn ein dwylo ni. Mae hwnnw'n gwestiwn i Gyllid a Thollau Ei Mawrhydi mewn sawl ffordd a chyrff eraill nad ydynt wedi'u datganoli. A phan wneir penderfyniad polisi ar fyr rybudd fel yn yr achos hwn, nid yw'n bosibl ymateb iddo mewn ffordd wahanol yma yng Nghymru mewn gwirionedd. Fodd bynnag, yn ystod y dyddiau diwethaf, bydd wedi gweld ystod o gynigion eraill a gyflwynwyd gan Lywodraeth y DU mewn perthynas â diwygio cyllid myfyrwyr, ac rwyf wedi gofyn i swyddogion weithio gyda swyddogion y Trysorlys a swyddogion Llywodraeth y DU i weld faint o le sydd gennym i symud yng Nghymru fel y gallwn wneud dewisiadau gwahanol i'r rhai a wneir mewn amgylchiadau gwahanol iawn dros y ffin.