威尔士首席部长琼斯2016年圣大卫节致辞

Message from the Rt Hon Carwyn Jones AM, First Minister of Wales, to Mark St David’s Day 2016

On the first of March, people in Wales and across the world join together to celebrate St David’s Day. It presents an opportunity to celebrate our people, history and culture, and to reflect on where we are as a nation.

A lot has happened in the last 5 years. Five years ago, the UK was looking forward to the Olympics in London. Welsh companies contributed to the construction of the Olympic Park; overseas teams trained in Wales; the Royal Mint in Llantrisant made the medals; and Welsh members of Team GB brought many of those medals back home to Wales.

We have since seen exceptional Welsh performances at the Commonwealth games; a heroic performance from the Welsh rugby team at the Rugby World Cup; and the Welsh football team reach the EUROs 2016.

Wales has also hosted major sporting events including: Golf’s Senior Open; the UEFA Super Cup; the Ashes test match in 2015; and, with England, the Rugby League World cup. On 26 March, the World Half Marathon will be in Cardiff.

As well as world-class sporting venues, we have great facilities like the world’s first full-length coastal path; mountain bike runs to match some of the best in Europe; the fastest zip wire in the world; and slate caverns transformed into an underground trampolining adventure.

It’s no wonder that Wales is featured in the Rough Guide’s top 10 countries to visit in 2016.

Wales has also hosted significant international events outside sport, including WOMEX 2013, the World Music Expo. In 2014, world leaders came to the NATO Wales Summit in Newport – for many, their first visit to Wales. Many spoke about the warmth and hospitality that the Welsh offer. Barack Obama, the first US President to visit Wales while in office, encouraged people in the United States to visit Wales, saying that it was “a country of extraordinary beauty, wonderful people and great hospitality”.

The Summit was a huge success story. It is a sign of a mature, devolved Wales that we could host this event safely and successfully – the first time a political event on this scale had ever to come to the UK.

The Devolution story has continued to evolve since the Government of Wales Act in 2011 gave Wales greater law – making powers. 2012 saw the first piece of legislation created wholly in Wales for more than 600 years when the Official Languages Bill was given Royal Assent.

The ground-breaking Human Transplantation (Wales) Act introduced presumed consent of organ donation.

The Well-Being of Future Generations (Wales) Act comes into force in April. It is about improving the social, economic, environmental and cultural wellbeing of Wales for future generations. At Climate Change Week New York in 2015, Nikhil Seth of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs at the United Nations said:

“We hope that what Wales is doing today, the world will do tomorrow….”

Wales’ economy is also on the up. In 2013-14, we saw the highest number of inward investment successes in 30 years.

New investors in 2014-15 included Finnish software company, Leadin; Calbee, Japan’s leading snack-food manufacturer and US cyber-security company Alert Logic.

Science and engineering have seen significant developments, too. Wales is growing an international reputation for world-class research and development. Our innovative Life Sciences Hub, Sêr Cymru, a scheme to attract world-class scientists and the £450m science and innovation Bay Campus at Swansea University are contributing to that story.

Our creative industry sector is also thriving. In 2014 Pinewood Studios came to Wales. Attracting the company which makes the James Bond films is testament to the burgeoning creative industry sector here. Wales produces programmes with a worldwide following like Dr. Who and Sherlock as well as having success in the gaming sector.

We continue to value and protect our heritage and language – the last 5 years have seen the Official Languages (Wales) Act 2012, a new Welsh language commissioner and standards.

Last year, I visited Patagonia to mark the 150th anniversary of the Welsh settlement in the Chubut province.

In 2014, DT100 celebrated 100 years since the birth of one of Wales’ most well-known poets and writers – Dylan Thomas. This year, we’ll be celebrating the centenary of Cardiff-born author, Roald Dahl, with another year-long programme of events – I hope that these events capture the imagination of people around the world, just as Dahl did with his storytelling.

Wales is a great country with great people. The St David Awards, now in their 3rd year, acknowledge the achievements of people in Wales. Look out for this year’s winners to be announced on 10 March.

Wherever you are in the world, I wish you a happy St David’s Day.