English: As we all know, community groups play an important and vital role in their communities and I'd like to begin by thanking, from the bottom of my heart, every community group that is active in the region that I represent. And although a number of community groups receive support from local authorities, a number of them face challenges too. What I would like to see personally as a result of this motion is to make it easier for communities to take ownership of local assets of community value. From October 2021 to April of this year, my office received 11 enquiries from community groups specifically seeking support with regard to the process of community asset transfer. In one example, a community group wants to save local playing fields for community use, while their local council, which owns the land, wants to sell the land for the construction of social housing. In the community group's experience, the council officials, who are meant to support the transfer of community assets, were compromised as the council had a firm view on the future of that particular parcel of land. Where was the support, therefore, for this group? Indeed, land is regularly sold by councils without communities being aware or being given the opportunity to protect the land as a community asset. Many of these are small plots of land in current communities that have difficulties with a multiplicity of issues such as parking, access to electric-vehicle charging points, and, of course, with the cost-of-living crisis, they don't have a parcel of land to grow food locally. A community right to buy would require estates departments to engage with local communities regarding proposals to sell parcels of land and to engage with the communities to establish their interest and to decide how assets like these can be used to meet local needs. Another group that has contacted my office has just secured a lease on their community asset, five years after beginning their discussions with the local authority. This lengthy process can place huge pressure on the volunteers who are part of community groups and can place much-needed funding at risk, as well as putting the future of the assets that communities are working so hard to save at risk, because we know that these assets will decline if the funding is not made available whilst they await a decision by the local authority. So, the experience of communities that have contacted me is that some local authorities treat them as though they are commercial entities rather than a key part of the community that the authority is committed to serving. We must put some measures in place. The current system as it currently stands isn't working, and I'm grateful to Mabon ap Gwynfor for raising this very important issue. After all, we all benefit if we empower our communities. We all benefit if historic buildings or parcels of land are used in a way that is beneficial to all of us. I'm very pleased to support this motion, but we also need to see action from Government on this. Thank you.
Welsh: Fel y gwyddom ni oll, mae grwpiau cymunedol yn chwarae rôl bwysig a hanfodol yn ein cymunedau a hoffwn ddechrau drwy ddiolch, o waelod calon, i bob grŵp cymunedol sydd yn weithgar yn y rhanbarth rwyf yn ei gynrychioli. Ac er bod nifer o grwpiau cymunedol yn derbyn cefnogaeth gan awdurdodau lleol, mae nifer yn wynebu heriau hefyd. Yr hyn yr hoffwn i yn bersonol ei weld yn deillio o'r cynnig hwn yw ei gwneud hi'n haws i gymunedau berchnogi asedau lleol o werth cymunedol. O fis Hydref 2021 i Ebrill eleni, fe dderbyniodd fy swyddfa 11 ymholiad gan grwpiau cymunedol yn ceisio cymorth yn benodol o ran y broses trosglwyddo asedau cymunedol. Mae un enghraifft o grŵp cymunedol sydd eisiau achub caeau chwarae lleol a'u hadfer ar gyfer deunydd cymunedol, tra bod y cyngor lleol, sydd berchen y tir, eisiau gwerthu'r tir ar gyfer adeiladu tai cymdeithasol. Profiad y grŵp cymunedol hwn oedd bod swyddogion y cyngor, oedd i fod i gefnogi trosglwyddo asedau cymunedol, wedi cael eu cyfaddawdu oherwydd bod barn bendant gan y cyngor o ran dyfodol y llecyn hwnnw o dir. Ble, felly, oedd y gefnogaeth ar gyfer y grŵp penodol hwn? Yn wir, mae tir yn cael ei werthu'n rheolaidd gan gynghorau lleol heb i gymunedau fod yn ymwybodol nac ychwaith gael cyfle i'w diogelu fel asedau cymunedol. Mae llawer o'r rhain yn ddarnau bychan o dir o fewn cymunedau presennol sy'n cael trafferth gyda materion lluosog megis parcio, mynediad i wefru cerbydau trydan, ac, wrth gwrs, efo'r argyfwng costau byw, ddim efo llecyn er mwyn tyfu bwyd yn lleol. Byddai hawl cymunedol i brynu yn ei gwneud yn ofynnol i adrannau ystadau ymgysylltu â chymunedau lleol ynghylch cynlluniau i werthu parseli o dir, ac ymgysylltu â'r gymuned i sefydlu diddordeb a phenderfynu sut y gellid defnyddio asedau o'r fath i ddiwallu anghenion lleol. Mae grŵp arall a gysylltodd â'm swyddfa newydd sicrhau'r brydles ar eu hased cymunedol, bum mlynedd ar ôl dechrau eu trafodaethau â'r awdurdod lleol. Gall y broses hirfaith hon roddi pwysau aruthrol ar wirfoddolwyr sy'n rhan o grwpiau cymunedol a rhoi cyllid y mae dirfawr ei angen arnynt mewn perygl, a hefyd bygwth dyfodol yr asedau y mae cymunedau'n gweithio'n galed i'w hachub, oherwydd rydym ni'n gwybod eu bod nhw'n mynd i ddirywio os nad ydy'r buddsoddiad yna'n dod tra maen nhw'n aros penderfyniad gan y cynghorau lleol. Profiad cymunedau sydd wedi cysylltu â mi, felly, yw bod rhai awdurdodau lleol yn trin cymunedau fel pe baent yn endidau masnachol yn hytrach na fel rhan allweddol o'r gymuned y mae'r awdurdod wedi ymrwymo i'w gwasanaethu. Mae'n sicr bod yn rhaid inni roi rhyw fesur ar waith. Dydy'r system fel y mae hi ddim yn gweithio, a dwi'n ddiolchgar i Mabon ap Gwynfor am godi'r pwnc pwysig eithriadol hwn. Wedi'r cyfan, rydym ni i gyd yn elwa os ydym ni'n grymuso ein cymunedau. Rydym ni i gyd yn elwa os ydy adeiladau hanesyddol neu ddarnau o dir yn cael defnydd sydd er budd i ni oll. Felly dwi'n falch iawn o gefnogi, ond mae angen hefyd gweld gweithredu gan y Llywodraeth ar hyn. Diolch.