Language ban on McDonald's

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Fast food giant McDonald's and Welsh language pressure group Cymuned have both been banned from giving out leaflets at a students' union event.

Cymuned is angered that its members were stopped from handing leaflets to freshers starting the new term at University of Wales, Aberystwyth.

The university's guild of students said it could not allow Cymuned into its "freshers' fayres" - or introductions to student life - because the group is not affiliated to the union.

But the student union said it was supporting Welsh by banning McDonald's from future fayres because the company failed to provide bilingual literature.

This has left us no option but to write to the company as well as some others telling them they will not be asked back again Student president Meilyr Emrys

Cymuned's Meinir Jones said it had printed 1,000 bilingual leaflets asking students from outside Wales to learn Welsh and explaining the plight of the language in Ceredigion.

The leaflet claimed that over the next three years students were either going to help save or help destroy the Welsh language.

'Hands tied'

But the group was stopped from attending the fayres after a meeting of the guild of students' six sabbatical officers.

The student guild banned Cymuned from attending three events

"I was told we couldn't attend any of the three student fayres because it would break their rules," said Ms Jones.

But guild of students president Meilyr Emrys said his organisation's hands were tied by the law.

"We cannot allow any political body that is not affiliated to the union into our fayres," he said.

"Although Wednesday's societies fayre includes organisations such as the Young Conservatives and Young Liberals these groups are registered with the union.

"If Cymuned agree to become affiliated to the union then we will have no problem in working with them".

Mr Emrys said that at Monday's trade fayre McDonald's had broken the union's bilingual policy by handing out English-only literature.

"They did this despite being told what our position is," said Mr Emrys.

"This has left us no option but to write to the company as well as some others telling them they will not be asked back again."

Cymuned said 700 of the leaflets had so far been distributed outside the fayres.

The leaflets told students that if they ignored the issue of Welsh "you'll be helping to destroy one of Europe's oldest living languages".