ELL: Gaelic Campaign

[David Wilson]

Dear List Members,

    The Gaelic language and Gaelic Medium Education (GME) have often been
marginalized and severely constrained by Local Authorities in Scotland. Many
of these Councils have little interest in supporting GME, because, unlike
English medium education, GME is not protected by law. Councils often think
they can act with impunity and reduce the Gaelic service to the lowest
common denominator.

    In the near future, Highland Council's Gaelic Medium early education
Officer will be leaving the Child Care Team. They are to be replaced with a
monoglot English speaker. No matter how well intentioned or trained, such a
replacement is unlikely to fully understand and appreciate the ethos,
culture and working practices of GME. This will mean there will be NO Gaelic
speakers in the Child Care Tean, forcing all parents, children and staff to
deal with this Officer and the Council in English.

    Highland Council have refused to discuss the matter and are pressing
ahead without consultation. It is important that pressure is brought to bear
upon the Council. As I said earlier, GME is not protected by law.

    If you wish to help in the campaign, please put the following questions
to the people below and express your own concerns about Gaelic.

1. Why no Gaelic speaking personnel have been hired to fill the vacancy ?

2. Did the Council look for a Gaelic speaking replacement ?

3. Does the Council plan to hire a Gaelic speaker to deal with the needs of
GME ?

Please send your emails to;

David Green (Highland Council Convenor) at; david.green.cllr at highland.gov.uk
Bruce Anderson (Director of Education)  at; bruce.robertson at highland.gov.uk

Gaelic needs legal protection. This can only be legislated for by the
Scottish Parlaiment, so please send copies to the relevent Ministers......

First Minister, Henry McLeish.
henry.mcleish.msp at scottish.parliament.uk

Gaelic Minister, Alasdair Morrison.
alasdair.morrison.msp at scottish.parliament.uk

Education Minister, Jack McConnell.
 jack.mcconnell.msp at scottish.parliament.uk

It would also be most helpful if you could send copies to all the members of
the Council. This will increase the pressure and help bring about change.
Simply paste and copy the entire list below into your copies box;

andrew.anderson.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; duncan.allan.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
david.alston.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; roderick.balfour.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
allan.beaton.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; stuart.black.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
douglas.briggs.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; george.bruce.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
peter.cairns.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; isabelle.campbell.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
neil.clark.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; john.cole.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
peter.corbett.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; garry.coutts.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
margaret.davidson.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; angus.dick.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
norrie.donald.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; morris.downie.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
basil.dunlop.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; richard.durham.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
michael.finlayson.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; rita.finlayson.cllr at highland.gov.uk
; david.flear.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; drmichael.foxley.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
clive.goodman.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; angus.gordon.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
jimmy.gray.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; john.green.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
janet.home.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; barbara.jardine.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
francis.keith.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; charles.king.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
ron.lyon.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; alastair.macdonald.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
eilidh.macdonald.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; olwyn.macdonald.cllr at highland.gov.uk
; william.maclachlan.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
liz.macdonald.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
drew.mcfarlane.slack.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
ewen.mackinnon.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; roy.macintyre.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
sandy.mackenzie.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
margaret.maclennan.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; ella.macrae.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
gillian.mccreath.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; alison.magee.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
john.matheson.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; kathleen.matheson.cllr at highland.gov.uk
; drew.millar.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; brian.murphy.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
james.oag.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; sandy.park.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
andrew.paterson.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; james.paterson.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
margaret.paterson.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; david.philip.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
alasdair.rhind.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; john.rosie.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
william.ross.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; bernard.salmon.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
roger.saxon.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
gavin.scott.moncrieff.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
robert.severn.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; jack.shiels.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
sheena.slimon.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; graeme.smith.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
william.smith.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; deirdre.steven.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
angus.sutherland.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; james.thomson.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
lou.wilkerson.cllr at highland.gov.uk ; carolyn.wilson.cllr at highland.gov.uk ;
robert.wynd.cllr at highland.gov.uk

Many thanks for your help.

David Wilson.



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