Written Answers Nos. 12 - 13
12. D'fhiafraigh Deputy Seán Crowe den Aire Ealaíon, Oidhreachta agus Gaeltachta an féidir leis an Rialtas tuairisc a thabhairt faoin dul chun cinn atá déanta maidir leis na Pleananna Teanga a luaitear in Acht na Gaeltachta; agus cad iad na hacmhainní breise atá á gcur ar fáil chun iad a fhorbairt. [41975/12]
View answer33. D'fhiafraigh Deputy Michael P. Kitt den Aire Ealaíon, Oidhreachta agus Gaeltachta cén méid airgid a leithroinnfidh a Roinn ar Phleanáil Teanga sa Ghaeltacht; an bhfuil an beartas faoi réir na Straitéise 20 Bliain don Ghaeilge; agus an ndéanfaidh sé ráiteas ina thaobh. [41772/12]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 12 and 33 together.
Tá na forálacha faoin bpróiseas pleanála teanga sna Limistéir Phleanála Teanga Ghaeltachta, sna Bailte Seirbhíse Gaeltachta agus sna Líonraí Gaeilge leagtha síos faoi Acht na Gaeltachta 2012. Beidh Orduithe le déanamh, ar ndóigh, chun feidhm reachtúil a thabhairt do Chuid 2 den Acht a bhaineann leis an bpróiseas pleanála teanga. Tá na céimeanna cuí maidir leis na hOrduithe seo idir lámha ag mo Roinnse faoi láthair.
Mar atá sonraithe in Acht na Gaeltachta, beidh ról lárnach ag Údarás na Gaeltachta agus ag Foras na Gaeilge maidir le cúnamh a thabhairt do phobail éagsúla agus d'eagraíochtaí éagsúla i ndáil le hullmhú agus le feidhmiú pleananna teanga sna ceantair éagsúla atá faoina gcúram. Tá cur chuige an Údaráis agus an Fhorais faoin bpróiseas pleanála teanga á phlé ag an ngrúpa oibre atá bunaithe ag mo Roinnse leis an Údarás agus leis an bhForas faoin Straitéis 20 Bliain don Ghaeilge 2010-2030. Tuigtear dom go bhfuil an tÚdarás agus an Foras ag plé le heagraíochtaí éagsúla ar an talamh chun dlús a chur leis an bpróiseas pleanála teanga, laistigh agus lasmuigh den Ghaeltacht.
Ar ndóigh, tá an próiseas pleanála teanga fite fuaite leis an Straitéis agus tá an cur chuige seo fréamhaithe sa Staidéar Cuimsitheach Teangeolaíoch ar Úsáid na Gaeilge sa Ghaeltacht. Is i gcomhthéacs an phróisis phleanála teanga a dhéanfar cinntí sonracha maidir leis an mbealach is fearr le freastal ar na héilimh éagsúla atá agus a bheidh ar mo Roinnse amach anseo. Táthar ag súil go mbeidh na páirtithe leasmhara go léir in ann a gcur chuige agus a dtosaíochtaí a mhúnlú de réir mar a bheidh an próiseas á leathnú amach, ag úsáid cibé soláthar airgid a bheidh ar fáil go seiftiúil agus go stuama.
13. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Arts; Heritage and the Gaeltacht the role he has played in preparation for the Gathering in 2013; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41797/12]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the Gathering is an initiative of my colleague, the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, and it has my and my Department's full support. Indeed only yesterday, I met Jim Miley, the Project Director of The Gathering to explore ways in which we could work together on this initiative.
The National Cultural Institutions are promoting a number of initiatives specifically designed to contribute to the success of The Gathering.
- The National Museum of Ireland is promoting its four sites as places where Gathering events from small family reunions up to big marquee events can take place, with special emphasis on the Museum of Country Life from a regional perspective.
- The National Concert Hall will be presenting an extended range of concerts during the summer months, featuring the best of Irish artists across all musical genres.
- The Irish Museum of Modern Art is intensifying its efforts to attract overseas media coverage of its main exhibitions with a view to attracting more visitors to the country.
- The National Gallery has arranged a programme of special lectures highlighting Irish and international artists, together with a series of study mornings featuring Turner, the Yeats Family and Modern Irish artists.
- The Crawford Art Gallery will establish an American chapter of the Friends of the Crawford in 2013 to promote connections and visits to the Gallery. Linking with the Smithsonian Institute, the Crawford will offer an integrated package of cultural tours of Ireland, with a focus on Cork and Munster.
- The National Archives will continue to provide a high quality service to family and local history researchers which will play a key role in The Gathering.
The Arts Council will play a key role in funding and developing arts events around the country during 2013. In addition to the music, dance, theatre, visual and other arts created with support from the Arts Council in every county in the State as part of its core role in funding the arts, the Council has also allocated special funding for the touring of works in 2013. This will ensure that more people right around the country – including, I hope, many of the thousands of visitors who will visit for The Gathering – can experience excellent performances and exhibitions locally.
In addition, the Culture Night and International Celebration of Irish Culture initiatives will also make a significant contribution towards the success of The Gathering. The Culture Night initiative has grown into a significant national cultural event, with more than 300,000 people visiting museums, galleries and other across the country in 2011. The International Celebration of Irish Culture is a new initiative based around the St. Patrick’s Day festival, which was well supported this year. Plans are already in hand to develop the concept further in 2013 with a key aim of using the existing St. Patrick’s Festival activity to promote Ireland and its culture, both domestically and internationally.
In the heritage area, I recently launched two new websites which aim to highlight lesser-known sites - national monuments and heritage buildings that are open to the public but which tend to be only visited by those very familiar with the particular area in which they are situated. It is hoped that the new Places to See and Monuments to Visit websites will assist in encouraging tourists to visit locations that might not otherwise be on their itineraries and also assist those of us welcoming relatives and friends from abroad as part of The Gathering next year to be able to identify locations close by that will interest visitors. Both websites feature easy-to-use digital maps that provide directions to the sites and details of what the visitor can expect to find on arrival.
Finally, I am conscious that genealogy will be of particular interest in the context of The Gathering. There is a wide range of genealogical material available in the country. In relation to my Department and the agencies under my auspices, genealogical services are provided by the National Library of Ireland, the National Archives and through the website www.irishgenealogy.ie operated by my Department. My Department and the institutions are exploring what improvements could be made to our genealogical offering against the backdrop of The Gathering. That work is ongoing.
