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(Seo alt ónár bhfoireann nua Gaeltachta. Is féidir an bunleagan as Gaeilge a léamh anseo.)
THE GOVERNMENT’S ACTION plan to improve the service provided to the public through Irish by the Public Service is set to be published at midday, after the Cabinet discusses the document at its weekly meeting today.
Dara Calleary, Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Development, made the announcement while speaking on Adhmhaidin on Monday about the report published this week on the implementation of ten language plans in Gaeltacht areas across the country.
The same report, which makes 40 recommendations on how the State could better support the implementation of language plans in the various areas, has been long awaited. The language plans are schemes in Gaeltacht areas to encourage and facilitate the use of Irish among the community.
Among the conclusions in the report by the authors who examined how the language plans in ten language planning areas (LPAs) had been successful was that there were many similarities between the different areas even though they were located in different parts of the country.
It cited “accelerating population decline, the dominance of English, the decline of the Irish language, economic deprivation and a lack of resources and investment, among other similarities”.
The 280-page document also stated that evidence showed that the valuable resource of the Irish language in the Gaeltacht was being wasted, with the Government setting a target of 20% of new recruits to the Public Service being Irish speakers by 2030.
“Despite the increase in the number of people who can speak Irish, particularly among young people of school age, the frequency of daily use outside the education system has decreased.
“The number of Irish speakers in the Gaeltacht has decreased by 2% between 2016 and 2022, particularly from the age of 30 onwards.”
The report’s authors, the Barr Feabhais agency, suggested that “a change in thinking, a change that makes everyone responsible for the promotion of Irish, is needed if the lead organisations of ÚnaG are to use the existing language capacity and infrastructure in the 10 Gaeltacht LPTs to reverse these trends”.
Speaking on Adhmaidin, Minister Calleary said that there were “a few things that were different” about the Government’s approach and mentioned that the largest amount of money ever received for language planning with an additional €3m in this year’s budget.
In addition, he said that a plan would be published today to improve the provision of Irish in the Public Service.
“I will be putting the Irish Language Public Services Action Plan before the Government board,” said the Minister, explaining that many of the recommendations in that plan would refer to points made in the review report on language planning.
He also indicated that the plan would contain a number of proposals imposing obligations on local and other authorities in relation to the provision of Irish language services.
He confirmed that the action plan would be published at noon, after the proposals had been discussed at the weekly Cabinet meeting.
The ten language planning areas included in the first review report were Carraroe, Arranmore, Kerry South, Kerry West, Kilkenny, Connemara Central, the Meath Gaeltacht, Gweedore, Anagry, Rannafast and Loughanure, North Mayo and Waterford Gaeltacht. There are 26 language planning areas in total and the implementation of each language planning area will be reviewed in turn.
According to the legislation, each language planning area has seven years to implement a language plan. In a statement issued this week by the Department of the Gaeltacht about the implications of the delays in the reviews and the terms of the language plans coming to an end, it was stated that an additional two years were being added to the language plan periods.
The Government action plan on Irish in the public service is the latest in a series of plans by the State to support Irish. The centenary of the first of these, the Gaeltacht Commission Report of 1926, will be marked this year by President Catherine Connolly. Other plans include the 2006 publication setting out the Government’s vision for Irish and, in 2010, the Government’s 20-year strategy for the Irish language.
The Journal’s Gaeltacht initiative is supported by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.
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