Mary Upton
Question:143 Dr. Upton asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the progress made by the Irish language advisory committee to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22785/04]
View answerTuesday, 5 October 2004
Questions (34, 35, 36)
Tom Hayes
Question:193 Mr. Hayes asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the progress being made to develop and implement a national plan for Irish as recommended under the report of the Gaeltacht Commission; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22719/04]
View answer
Simon Coveney
Question:208 Mr. Coveney asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the work to date of the Irish Language Forum, established following the report of the Gaeltacht Commission; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22720/04]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 143, 193 and 208 together.
The Irish Language Forum was established by me in July of this year with terms of reference to advise in relation to: the desirability of a 20 year strategic plan with realistic goals for the Irish language in the State; the short-term strategic priorities for the preservation and the promotion of the Irish language within the State; the priorities regarding the implementation of the Official Languages Act; and the best and most practical ways to achieve progress with regard to the implementation of that work.
The forum has had one meeting to date and is due to meet again on 21 October. It was agreed at the first meeting of the forum that the members of it would submit proposals in advance of the next meeting in regard to matters that should be discussed in the context of any strategic plan for the Irish language and priority issues that need to be addressed in the short term. These matters will be addressed at future meetings of the forum.