Brian O'Shea
Question:112 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for Defence the amount of money his Department has spent on the Irish language in each of the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15068/03]
Written Answers. - Irish Language.
Brian O'Shea
Question:113 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for Defence his Department's objective in relation to its expenditure on the Irish language; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15082/03]
Brian O'Shea
Question:114 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for Defence the monitoring system his Department has in place in regard to his Department's objective in relation to the Irish language; the expenditure in achieving that objective; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15096/03]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 112 to 114, inclusive, together.
The Department of Defence follows Government policy on the use of the Irish language, a primary element of which is that any citizen who wishes to conduct his-her business with the Department through Irish may do so. This policy is reflected in the Department's customer service action plan which commits to providing quality services through Irish and informs customers of their right to choose to be dealt with through one or other of the official languages.
The Department facilitates staff members' participation in Irish language training courses and scholarships as part of an ongoing Civil Service-wide scheme. The training courses are provided at no cost to Defence by the Language Training Centre, Department of Finance, formerly Gaeleagras. The amounts spent on scholarships to study Irish in the Gaeltacht were €622.16 in 1999 and €177.76 in 2003.
Similarly, Defence Forces personnel attend various Irish language courses, including courses held in military barracks and in Conradh na Gaeilge in Dublin and Galway. In addition, a week long Irish language training camp, available to all members of the Defence Forces, has been held each year since 1993 in Dun Uí Mhaoiliosa, Galway. Excluding normal pay and allowances, funding in this area was €2,539 in 1999, €3,174 in 2000, €4,000 in 2001, €4,000 in 2002 and is €5,000 in 2003.