English: I absolutely concur that there are real pressures and real challenges, but not just for the higher education sector, bearing in mind the topic of this debate. The radical reforms this Welsh Labour-led Government has implemented in response to the Diamond review are radical and they will create a strong and sustainable funding settlement. This radical and progressive approach will also mean students are better supported. So, we listened to students' concerns around the costs of living, and we will therefore be the first country in Europe to provide equivalent living costs support in both grants and loans to full-time and part-time undergraduates, because we've listened, we heard and we have acted. And while the UK Government has cut back on grants for English students, Wales has moved further and has fostered support to those students from homes with a lower household income, and this is also right. Labour Governments have a proud record of expanding higher education, opening new institutions, establishing the Open University and improving access for people of all backgrounds. And here in Wales, with the ongoing Diamond suite of reforms, we are continuing that radical trajectory and tradition. But, of course, in response to Helen Mary's interjection, we also have to and must recognise that there are very real pressures within the sector, in particular the concerns around job losses and the sustainability of some institutions, and that is a great worry to many. But it is also right that Welsh Government has called on Welsh universities to become living wage employers, and I would very much like to underscore that. So, Minister, I would therefore like to ask what representations has the Welsh Government made to institutions' staff and trade unions around the impact of job losses announced by Welsh institutions. And with regard to the projected Brexit implications on Welsh higher education institutions as well, in particular the calamitous 'no deal' Brexit, what support has the Welsh Government put in place to support institutions through this very difficult time for the sector and, by a result, the Welsh economy?
Welsh: Cytunaf yn llwyr fod pwysau gwirioneddol a heriau gwirioneddol, ond nid y sector addysg uwch yn unig, o gofio pwnc y ddadl hon, sy'n eu hwynebu. Mae'r diwygiadau radical y mae'r Llywodraeth hon a arweinir gan Lafur Cymru wedi'u rhoi ar waith mewn ymateb i adolygiad Diamond yn radical a byddant yn creu setliad ariannu cryf a chynaliadwy. Bydd y dull radical a blaengar hwn hefyd yn golygu bod myfyrwyr yn cael gwell cefnogaeth. Felly, gwrandawsom ar bryderon myfyrwyr ynghylch costau byw, ac felly ni fydd y wlad gyntaf yn Ewrop i ddarparu cymorth ar gyfer costau byw sy'n gyfwerth mewn grantiau a benthyciadau i israddedigion amser llawn a rhan-amser, gan ein bod wedi gwrando, wedi clywed ac wedi gweithredu. Ac er bod Llywodraeth y DU wedi torri'n ôl ar grantiau i fyfyrwyr Lloegr, mae Cymru wedi symud ymhellach ac wedi sicrhau cymorth i fyfyrwyr o gartrefi ar incwm aelwydydd is, ac mae hyn hefyd yn iawn. Mae gan Lywodraethau Llafur record anrhydeddus o ehangu addysg uwch, agor sefydliadau newydd, sefydlu'r Brifysgol Agored a gwella mynediad i bobl o bob cefndir. Ac yma yng Nghymru, gyda'r gyfres barhaus o ddiwygiadau Diamond, rydym yn parhau â'r llwybr a'r traddodiad radicalaidd hwnnw. Ond wrth gwrs, i ymateb i ymyriad Helen Mary, rhaid inni hefyd gydnabod bod pwysau gwirioneddol o fewn y sector, yn enwedig y pryderon ynghylch colli swyddi a chynaliadwyedd rhai sefydliadau, ac mae hynny'n ofid mawr i lawer. Ond mae hefyd yn iawn fod Llywodraeth Cymru wedi galw ar brifysgolion Cymru i ddod yn gyflogwyr cyflog byw, a hoffwn bwysleisio hynny'n fawr. Felly, Weinidog, hoffwn ofyn pa sylwadau y mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi'u cyflwyno i staff sefydliadau ac undebau llafur ynghylch effaith y colli swyddi a gyhoeddwyd gan sefydliadau yng Nghymru. Ac o ran y goblygiadau a ragwelwyd yn sgil Brexit i sefydliadau addysg uwch Cymru, yn enwedig Brexit 'dim bargen' trychinebus, pa gymorth y mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi'i roi ar waith i gefnogi sefydliadau drwy'r cyfnod anodd hwn i'r sector ac o ganlyniad, i economi Cymru?