Ireland: O'Cuiv policy on Irish has led to 'fewer speakers'

[Harold Schiffman]

Independent.ie
O'Cuiv policy on Irish has led to 'fewer speakers'
By Patricia McDonagh
Friday November 09 2007

Gaeltacht Affairs Minister Eamon O Cuiv was accused last night of
leaving a legacy of "useless harebrained policy" on the Irish
language, with fewer speakers to go with it. The minister was forced
to defend claims that he had stripped department budgets to satisfy
his own "personal whims" when deciding on Irish language policy.
Tempers flared as the opposition hit out at the cost of translating
documents that "nobody ever reads" into Irish and not dealing with the
crux of the problem -- the education system. The waste of taxpayer's
money under the Official Languages Act was "one of the worst unfunded
mandates in the country", Fine Gael TD John Deasy said.

The minister said the need to provide Irish translation came from the
Constitution which stated the Irish was the country's first language
and that various judgments of the Supreme Court had ordered the need
for it. The translation of documents was being done as "cheaply as
possible", with many of the documents only published every five years.
Providing written services through Irish was an "express train coming
down the tracks", he said, adding that if he had not introduced it the
House would have faced crisis.

Mr Deasy hit back saying if that was the minister's only defence then
it was "fairly pathetic". Since the minister entered office, all his
"grand accomplishments" consisted of were endless committees and
reports on the language, he said. And during that time he had also
presided over the demise of Irish speakers, Mr Deasy added. Fine Gael
spokesman on rural and Gaeltacht affairs Michael Ring denounced the
Government's failure to ensure people enjoyed learning the language in
school.

Over 95pc of people can't speak it because the educational system was
still trying to beat it into them, Mr Ring said.

- Patricia McDonagh

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/ocuiv-policy-on-irish-has-led-to-fewer-speakers-1215651.html

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