Seanad Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 15 Dec 1993

Vol. 138 No. 14

Adjournment Matters. - Timire Gaeilge.

Mr. McDonagh

I dtús báire cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire atá anseo anocht in ionad an Aire Oideachais.

Ní féidir le Coiste Gairm Oideachais Chontae ne Gaillimhe a scéim Oideachais a chur í gcrích go huile agus go hiomlán gan seirbhísi timire Gaeilge a bheith ar fáil. Tá sé seo intuigthe nuair a chuireann tú san áireamh go bhfuil scéim Chontae na Gaillimhe ar an cuigiú scéim is mó san tír. Tá an obair ag dul i méid in aghaidh na bliana agus is amhlaidh gur géire an riachtanas dá bhrí sin go gceadódh an Roinn Oideachais timire Gaeilge buan.

Chomh maith leis sin tá dlúthbhaint idir an Ghaeilge agus obair an choiste mar atá léirithe ag na gníomhaíochtaí éagsúla a thiteann mar dhualgais ar an timire Gaeilge. Is orthu siúd a thiteann an obair a bhaineann leis na míreanna seo a leanas: (1) tá scéim scóláireachtaí i Rosmuc agus 120 gasúr ag freastal ar chúrsaí a bhí ann gan briseadh ó 1933; (2) tá cúrsa do ábhar mhúinteoirí don Cheard Teastas á chur ar fáil gach bliain, (3) tá cúrsa do iascairí óga á chur ar fáil; (4) tá scoileanna éigse agus seanachais á eagrú agus féithoireachta á dhéanamh orthu agus ollchruinnithe á socrú; tá freastal mar thimire ar cúig scoileanna sa Ghaeltacht agus ocht san fhíor Ghaeltacht; (6) tá freastal mar thimire ar na trí Oileáin in Árainn. Is léir ón méid sin atá le déanamh ag timire Gaeilge nach mór comharba a cheapadh láithreach do Liam Ó Donnchadha, iar-thimire a chuaigh amach ar phinsean ar 31 Lúnasa 1992. Iarraimid mar sin faomhadh na Roinne don cheapachán seo gan a thuilleadh moille.

County Galway Vocational Education Committee is urgently in need of an Irish organiser to replace Liam Ó Donnchadha who resigned from the position on 31 August 1992 having given distinguished service and reached retirement age. The committee had the unbroken services of a timire Gaeilge from 1933 to 1992 and Liam O'Donnchadha acted as timire since 1955.

When one takes into account that County Galway vocational education committee has the fifth largest scheme in the country and that the scheme embraces large Gaeltacht areas, it is evident that the committee cannot fully implement its scheme without the services of an Irish organiser. The amount of work involved in putting the scheme into operation is increasing annually, due to enrolment figures showing an upward trend in most schools in the county. It has always been the vocational education committee's policy to expand the scheme to comply with various achievements involving the provision of education courses and so on. Some of this work would, no doubt, fall to the Irish organiser.

The following is a summary of the duties of an Irish organiser and future developments would add to this summary: (1) the organisation and implementation of the Rosmuc scholarship scheme for 120 students which has been in operation with an unbroken record since 1935; (2) the course for the teacher trainees who wish to obtain the Ceard-Teastais; this course is held annually in Carraroe; (3) the holding of a young fishermen's course at a Gaeltacht venue and (4) the organisation and superintending of scoileanna éigse agus seanachais, that is, the Irish folklore groups in the Gaeltacht; (5) work as an Irish organiser in five Gaeltacht and eight iar-Gaeltacht nó Galltacht schools throughout the county of Galway.

As will be seen from this summary of duties, it is imperative that the Department of Education authorise the appointment of a full-time permanent Irish organiser for County Galway vocational education committee without further delay. Otherwise a major portion of the committee's scheme will remain unaccomplished to the detriment of County Galway in general and certain areas in particular. Tá litir anseo agam ó Chumann Príomhoidí na nGairm Scoil agus na gColáistí Pobal chun a chur in iúl don Aire comh práinneach is atá an scéal. Téann sé mar seo:

A Chara:

Ag cruinniú na bPríomhoidí ar an lú Nollaig, '93, chuir an Príomhoifigeach Feidhmiúcháin, Choiste Gairmoideachas Chontae na Gaillimhe, in iúl dúinn nach raibh Timire Gaeilge Lan-Aimseartha Buan le fáil don chontae seo, i.e. Chontae na Gaillimhe.

Chuir seo ionadh agus alltacht orainn óir bhí Timire Gaeilge ag gniomhú i gContae na Gaillimhe ó 1935 i leith.

Is scanallach an scéal é seo agus fulaingneóidh Cúrsaí Gaeilge agus Cultúrtha in iomlán dá bhárr. Tá Cúrsaí Scoláireachtaí ar siúl ó 1935 i leith agus cuidíonn siad seo go mór le meas agus gean i leith na Gaeilge agus na Gaeltachta. Tá an obair iontach seo ar fad a bhí ar siúl ag an Timire Gaeilge le beagnach 60 bliain i mbaol agus an Ghaeilge i lag trá go náisiúnta.

Impíonn-muidne ort ó Chumann na bPríomhoidí, gníomhú agus féachaint chuige go mbeidh Timire Gaeilge Lan-Aimseartha Buan againn ag tús 1994.

Tá an litir sínithe ag Michéal Breathnach, Rúnaí Gairmscoil Cholmain Naofa, Gort Inse Guaire, ar son Cumann Príomhoidí na nGairm Scoil agus na gColáistí Pobal.

To summarise, there is consternation in County Galway vocational education committee. The principal's association of all the schools in the county share this worry. Landladies who in many cases have put extensions onto their houses to cater for the students at the Irish courses in summer are extremely worried. This is a major business in the Gaeltacht of Connemara. The situation has been exacerbated by the fact that the adult education officer of County Galway vocational education committee is now going on a career break to Russia. The great anomaly is that the Minister for the Gaeltacht is bringing in Teilifís na Gaeilge at this time. As Fine Gael spokesperson for the Gaeltacht in this House I commend the Minister for his meaningful effort to consolidate the language.

County Galway vocational education committee, of which I am the vice chairman, has set up a special subcommittee to input into this new service but nobody will be there to service this committee now because we have no timire Gaeilge in the county. The Galway Gaeltacht areas have contributed much to the Irish language over the years and I appeal to the Minister and to the Minister of State who is here tonight to represent her to let the work continue. There is an onus on the Minister at this crucial time to allow County Galway vocational education committee to appoint a timire exclusively for County Galway vocational education committee.

I wish to put on the record that unless this permission from the Minister for Education is forthcoming the consequences are frightening and manifold: (1) the highly successful Gaeltacht scholarship scheme will no longer function; (2) courses for young fishermen in the Gaeltacht will die; (3) the course for teacher trainees who wish to obtain the Ceard-Teastas, held annually in Carraroe — a very important qualification for teachers in vocational schools — can no longer continue in the Gaeltacht of Connemara; (4) the organisation and superintending of Irish folklore groups in the Gaeltacht will cease; (5) work as Irish organiser in Gaeltacht and iar-Gaeltacht schools will be grievously affected and (6) the proposed County Galway vocational education committee input into the newly proposed Teilifís na Gaeilge will be lost.

It is imperative that the Minister gives approval to County Galway vocational education committee to appoint a timire exclusively for County Galway vocational education committee. I wish to lay particular emphasis on the word "exclusively" because it is established already that County Galway vocational education committee has had a timire since 1935. It embraces the full Gaeltacht of Connemara and the Aran Islands. We applied for our own timire and, as the Minister is aware, the reply we got was not satisfactory. If this timire is not approved and sanctioned it will be to the major detriment of the Irish language in Galway. Ministers from Galway are already familiar with the situation that prevails, particularly the Minister for the Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht, who is doing such great work in setting up Teilifís na Gaeilge. It is imperative that the Minister allows County Galway vocational education committee appoint a timire exclusively for the county of Galway.

Minister of State at the Department of the Environment (Mr. Stagg)

A Leas-Chathaoirligh, níl ach beagán Gaeilge agam. Más mian leis an Teach labharfaidh mé i mBéarla. I am glad the Senator has raised this matter as it gives me an opportunity to inform the House of the Department's position.

I wish to assure the House that the Minister is committed to the preservation of our national language and culture and that she would not be party to any decision which would result in the services in respect of the Irish language being provided by County Galway vocational education committee "grinding to a halt", to use Senator McDonagh's words.

It is important that the House should be aware of the background facts in relation to this issue. In June 1992, the chief executive officer of County Galway Vocational Education Committee informed my Department that the timire Gaeilge employed by his committee would be retiring at the end of August 1992.

The officials of the Department immediately made inquiries in order to ascertain the nature of the duties carried out by the retiring officer and to establish whether the filling of the vacancy created by his retirement was warranted. No other vocational education committee in the country has such a post. Discussions were held with the chief executive officer and it was intimated to him that, on the basis of the information provided, the Department was not prepared to sanction the appointment of a replacement timire Gaeilge.

The chief executive officer immediately wrote to my Department requesting the appointment of an educational officer who would assume the duties of a timire Gaeilge as well as those of education officer. A schedule signed by the chief executive officer containing the conditions of service of an education officer was attached to his application. Incidentally, the duties of an education officer and a timire Gaeilge are not the same. Subsequently, further correspondence was received in the Department which indicated that County Galway vocational education committee were seeking appointment of both an education officer and a timire Gaeilge.

Following receipt of these requests, the Department reviewed the position carefully and in detail. It was decided not to sanction the appointment of an education officer for County Galway vocational education committee. Furthermore, the Department was not convinced that there was a need for a full-time post of timire Gaeilge to service the area of the County of Galway for which County Galway vocational education committee is responsible. However, it was accepted that there was a need for a timire Gaeilge in the region.

Accordingly, my Department advised both the chief executive officer of County Galway vocational education committee and the chief executive officer of the City of Galway vocational education committee in writing on 5 May 1993 of its decision to approve the appointment of a timire. The letter to each chief executive officer indicated, inter alia, that the person to be appointed would be responsible for the performance of duties for both the City and County vocational education committees. Conditions of service and the qualification requirements relating to the proposed appointment were also provided. The post has been advertised and I understand that a number of applications have been received.

The appointment process has not advanced beyond that stage to date. I am aware there have been discussions between the chairpersons and chief executive officers of the two vocational education committees in relation to the appointment procedures and the allocation of duties to the timire. Unfortunately, it appears that the discussions have run into difficulties and final agreement has not been reached. As a result, the post remains vacant.

The Minister's decision in relation to the need for a post still stands. She is convinced that the post is required to maintain the service to an Gaeilge in the region. The Department has already approved filling the post on that basis and any further delay in this regard should be avoided. I, therefore, urge both vocational education committees to get together to resolve whatever problems still exist so that the timire Gaeilge may be appointed under the terms and conditions outlined in the Department's letter of 5 May 1993.