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The MoD spends around one million pounds each year to place students to independent schools in north Wales because "state schools teach various lessons in the Welsh tongue".

The ministry disbursed over one million pounds in day school allowance in the northern region for 83 children of service personnel in 2024-2025, and £942,000 for 79 children in 2023-2024 under a established policy.

A spokesperson stated "military families' children can experience regular relocations" and the allowance "aims to minimize interruption to their schooling".

Plaid Cymru called it a "total misuse of money" and "an insult to our tongue" while the Conservatives argued parents should be able to choose the language in which their kids are educated.

The figures were obtained following a request under the public records law.

The website of RAF Valley on Anglesey informs its personnel, "for those residing and working in north Wales, where public schools provide some or all lessons in the Welsh tongue, you can opt to send your children to an English-medium private institution".

"As long as you are joined by your family at your duty station, you can use this allowance to pay for the cost of school charges, field study trips/residential learning programs and daily transport."

A defense ministry representative explained, "the purpose of Day School Allowance in North Wales (the allowance) is to support service families posted to the area, where the Welsh tongue is the primary medium of local state education".

"Since relocation is a part of service life, service children can encounter regular transfers and from DSA-NW aims to minimize disruption to their learning."

"The ministry acknowledges the contributions military members, and their families undertake, and from DSA-NW helps with the costs of independent day schooling given in English."

'Where teaching is bilingual or non-English'

The benefit includes tuition fees up to a limit of £22,755 a year, £7,585 each semester, and is available to people residing in the counties of the county, Denbighshire, Gwynedd, the island or the district and serving in these specific locations:

• RAF Valley, Anglesey
• The combined forces alpine training facility, the island
• The joint military mountain unit, Llanrwst
• The university military training program (UOTC), Bangor detachment, Caernarfon

The qualifying independent institutions are Treffos institution, the village, the island; Rydal Penrhos Prep school in Colwyn Bay; St Gerard's school, Bangor and St David's institution, the town.

The relevant military policy document confirms that "payment of the allowance is restricted to those areas where teaching in the state sector is on a bilingual or non-English basis".

People serving elsewhere in the three branches of the armed forces - the ground forces, the naval service and the air service - can apply for a educational continuity benefit which helps with boarding and/or tuition fees up to a cap, with a required family share of ten percent for each eligible child.

Tory assembly representative Natasha Asghar said "members of the British armed forces relocate across the country and the globe, and the MoD have always tried to guarantee that their kids have access to consistency in education".

"Although we fully support Welsh-medium education throughout the country, it's crucial to remember there are two official languages in our country, the English tongue and Welsh, and municipal authorities and education authorities should provide for each."

"Parents should always have the option to select the medium in which their children are instructed."

The Welsh party's education spokesperson Cefin Campbell MS stated "not only is this a complete waste of money, it is a slight to our language".

"It's hard to imagine any justifiable cause to be allocating these funds annually, on preventing young people living in Wales from having the chance to learn the Welsh language."

"Bilingualism enriches life and aids the growth of youth, but the British administration is clearly blind to this."

"This money is a perfect example of the attitude of the Westminster parties towards the nation and the Welsh language - namely unawareness and insults."