The Ceann Comhairle, Seán Ó Fearghaíl TD, today launched Straitéis na Gaeilge, 2021, the Irish Language Strategy for the Houses of the Oireachtas. The Strategy aims to expand the range of Irish language supports and resources available to Members and staff of the Houses of the Oireachtas Service and help it develop into a functioning bilingual organisation.
Straitéis na Gaeilge, 2021 will build on the success of the original 2018 Straitéis. It will focus, in particular, on increasing the use of the Irish language in both the Dáil and the Seanad. A Dáil steering group and a Seanad steering group, involving Members, will monitor this objective.
The new Straitéis also aims to increase the cohort of Irish-speaking staff in the Service. The Houses of the Oireachtas Service will support bilingual recruitment and will continue to organise events, in person and online, to support Members and staff of all competency levels in using and improving their spoken Irish.
The first Straitéis na Gaeilge was launched in 2018 as part of the Bliain na Gaeilge initiative. It facilitated and encouraged the use of Irish by Members and staff by providing Irish language business supports including Bills glossaries and the Irish language library, Taisce na Leabhar.