Process before people! Burocratic bumblings west of the Corrib!

Stop Press: U-Turn The Dept's Announcement 26th September 2015: Raidío na Gealtachta news reader Maríon Ní Shúilleabháin was first out of the stocks at 21.00 last evening  with a tweeted copy of a embargoed release from the Department which announced the cancellation of the contract for a helicopter service from Carnmore to the Aran Islands. This is in fact a u-turn by the government.  Here is how it is reported by the Irish Times: Tender procedure for Aran Island air service cancelled! The Irish Independent has: Minister cancels decision to award Aran Islands air service to helicopter firm! And the Journal.ie: Aran Islands helicopter contract cancelled after backlash from locals!  And this is how tuairisc.ie (the Irish news service)  reported it: Deireadh curtha leis an bpróiseas tairisceana maidir le seirbhís aeir d’Oileáin Árann!  Sadly there has been no good news for the people of Cleggan as AnPost have been adamant in their decision to close the post office service there at a meeting with the people yesterday!

There is an apocraphal story about the discontinuation of the last telephone kiosk in Cill Rónáin, the capital of the Aran Islands. The telephone company removed the telephone and on the door of the kiosk afixxed the following notice:

"Service from this kiosk has been discontinued. However if a telephone is required the nearest in service kiosk is in Roundstone!"

Now the frequency of any, if any, connections to Roundstone - which is on the mainland - is to say the least infrequent. The message that it underlines however is the futility of distance management. The nearest kiosk may very well have been in Roundstone but the possibility of getting there to use it in any reasonable time was non-existent. Local knowledge could have instructed this decision.

There have been  a number of cases in Conamara and Árainn recently which also highlight this lack of local knowledge or indeed respect for local consultation.

The school bus

There are close to 30 young people in our district who attend the  "local" secondary school. This school is not in the parish but about a dozen miles away. Suddenly and without prior notice parents were advised that the bus service which has served the school from this district was been discontinued. Needless to say this created a major problem, not least for the school. The fact that so many pupils would no longer be able easily to attend classes could have implications on how many teachers they could be justified to the Department of Education. Happily after a very strong and robust protest by both parents and school authorities the decision was rescinded. For the moment?

Department superceded!

The Island of Inis Meáin is the smallest of the three islands which guard Galway Bay. It has a small population and a small school. The Department of Education has applied their rules strictly with regard to teacher ratios without reference to the needs of particular areas. This has meant that the primary school on the island has only one teacher teaching all classes from infants up to sixth class. If as has happened that teacher is ill there is no teacher for the school and there is difficulty in getting a temporary teacher not least because of the location of the school. The Government has refused to relent from this hard-line approach and the island suffers as a result. To the eternal shame of the Government a solution was presented, albeit a temporary one. An international company, Zurich Insurance, has agreed to finance a second teacher for this school. Inability to understand local conditions and deliberate deafness to local advice again is the hallmark of the states response. "The case for the reinstatement of an additional teacher at the primary school on Inis Meáin is a strong one," they said in a statement. Obviously not strong enough for the Department to bend its rules.

The local post office.

"An Post regrets to advise customers that this Postal Agency will close on Friday 28th August 2015."  This was the news that greeted residents of NW Connemara village Cleggan a short ten days before it happened. This village is the mainland connection for Inisbofin. It is not a Gaeltacht area.  Their Post Office, which has served the people of Cleggan for at least four decades, was finally to close.  It had been downgraded some years previously to the status of a Sub-Post Office, with no facility to offer full postal services.  However, it had continued to provide Social Benefit payments to pensioners, those on disability payments, and the unemployed.  Cleggan is a relatively isolated village, so the loss of these services locally represents a major blow to the village. The residents of Cleggan and its environs find it impossible to understand the decision by An Post, a decision "taken by some faceless person in An Post".  Local knowledge? Consultation?

Sorry we can't take anyfurther bookings!
But perhaps the most extraordinary example of this kind of senselessness was in the announcement of the termination of the 45 year fixed wing plane service from the Conamara Regional Airport to the Aran Islands and replacing it with a helicopter from the disused Galway Airport some 50+ kilometers away..

Joe McHugh TD - "Pleased!"

"Minister of State for Gaeltacht Affairs, Joe McHugh T.D., has announced today (26 August 2015) that the preferred tenderer for the air service contract to the Aran Islands is Executive Helicopters Limited. It is intended that the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, as the contracting authority, will conclude a contract with the preferred bidder after September 9 following the standstill period. The Office of Government Procurement was responsible for organising the public procurement process regarding tenders for the air service. Under the new contract, daily return flights by helicopter will be provided between the islands and Galway Airport for the period from 1 October 2015 to 30 September 2019." The Minister obviously had not the slightest clue as to the effect of this announcement as he is quoted as saying. "I'm pleased to be able to make this announcement today. The agreement between my Department and Executive Helicopters Limited ensures that the air service to the Aran Islands will continue over the next four years."

For almost a half century the business community on the islands as well as other sectors (health, education, and tourism and the adminstration of the justice system) have availed of the service of what is now Aer Arann Islands, a service which has provided an enviably efficient service over the years. More recently the predecessor of the current Minister of State had indicated that there might be a discontinuation of the service for economic reason. The islanders made strong representations for the maintenance of the service showing just how the live of the islanders was improved by its existence. Indeed many islanders can have excellent jobs on the mainland and live their lives in their homes on the islands.

The local secondary schools have agreements with schools a short distance from the Conamara airport which greatly enhance the experience of schools on both sites of the water. Island businesses regard the air service as a liveline and use it constantly. Even if the weather is bad and does not allow for the plane service, the airport is close enough to Ros a'Mhíl to allow easy transportation between venues. Some business on the Island will close down if the service welcomed by the Minister is adopted. The airport will close down and there will be a loss of about 40 jobs directly engaged in the Aer Arann Islands service.

Choice or imposition?

In addition there is a fear among many people of traveling in helicopters. They are certainly more susceptible to adverse weather conditions than planes. There is doubt among air professionals as to their flexibility in "island hopping". Indeed there are no examples in all of Europe of a continual air service to islands using other than fixed wing aircraft. Also replacing a 7 minute fixed wing journey from a convenient airport with a 15 to 20 minute journey from the other side of Galway city needs to be justified. The fact that the availability of this airport is in question is also adding to the confusion.

The Office of Government Procurement was responsible for this debacle - some faceless person in Dublin? Even the local TD from the main Government party acknowledges that this particular process is a mess. Indeed aviation experts including a former member of the Air Corps, who, after discussing many of the points made above and more got straight to the nitty gritty: "...a single question remains – was there anyone with aviation experience involved in the procurement process in this particular instance? " To date this question has not been answered.

A meeting of the Islands' delegation with the Minister last Thursday produced no solace for the Islanders. A spokesman for the island delegation said after the meeting that he was even more disappointed than the previous meeting. All the minister would say was that the process had to run its course.

A subsequent statement from the Minister's office explained his position:
"In accordance with legal advice received, it has now been decided to extend the voluntary standstill period to 16 November 2015 with a view to obtaining clarification on the availability of Galway Airport for the duration of the 4 year contract from 1 October 2015 as set out in the Request for Tenders. The Department will be writing to the owners of Galway Airport in that regard.

In order to ensure that an air service continues to be provided to/from the Aran Islands, the Department will be engaging with the existing service provider (Galway Aviation Services Ltd trading as Aer Arann) with a view to agreeing the terms of an extension to the existing contract from 1 October 2015 to 1 February 2016."

Thus it appears that the Minister has extended by three months the contract of Aer Arann Islands. It subsequently appeared that they (Aer Arann Islands) learned about it only from radio reports! Indeed it appears that they still are unofficially aware of the position and are refusing to accept bookings after 30th September (Report in Sunday Independent 13 Sep 2015).

See also this article in Flying in Ireland 11 Sep 2015 -  Climb down on Aran Islands Air Service – For Now.

Meanwhile protective notice for those whose jobs are directly or indirectly have been issued.

Is it little wonder that the picture shown in this account of the most recent discussion with the Minister (the second in about a week) looks like nothing so much as a post funeral gathering. (Pic Tuairisc.ie)

A recent piece from a resident of the smallest of these three islands gives their perspective and indeed expectation. "I learned about the evacuation of the Blasket Islands in 1953 and how the government of the day stood by and allowed these islanders, a people rich in our own culture and language was allowed to be confined to the annals of history. 

If we continue to go in the direction that we are going, if we accept this and not stand up for what is right I believe that my own children will one day be interviewed by scholars eager to learn about how life on the Aran Islands was when they used to be populated."

Another islander has written this article which appeared in The Examiner: Aer Arann is more than an airline to the Aran Islands. It’s a lifeline. (15/9/2015). "Aer Arann’s current PSO from the State is €1.2m. The revised PSO, won by Executive Helicopters, was for €800,000.

This isn’t much more than annual social welfare payments that will need to be paid to those in the direct employment of Aer Arann as of next month, most of whom have skills that are not transferable.

Factor in the additional dole drawn when jobs are lost due to a downturn in tourism and craft trades, and that saving from cutting the PSO becomes dwarfed by hand-outs. Inis Maan Knitting Factory feel they will probably have to relocate. They employ 10% of the entire island’s population

Jobs that would only take an hour or so to do — such as fixing the Sky box or wi-fi — will now cost islanders a full day’s rate, as the helicopter and ferry service will be reduced to two crossings a piece. Islanders will also have to wait for service providers to have a full day that they can commit to doing the simplest of jobs."

There are those who say that this contract is part of an interim scheme to discontinue the air service completely by making it unworkable. In a few years time a justifiable decision would be made that since the service is not been used that much it should be shut down completely. But not even the state bureaucracy could be that devious. Could it?

Responsibility It was a Fine Gael led Government which abolished the requirement for Irish in the state service. It was a Fine Gael led government which de-democratised the Gaeltacht Authority. It was a Fine Gael led government which watered down the law which stated that all bills and acts should be issued in both languages simultaeneously. It was a Fine Gael government that proposed the subsumation of the Office of Coimisinéir Teanga into the Office of Ombudsman. It was a Fine Gael led Government which allowed a gardiner in its employ be threatened if he did not desist in his advocacy for a strong supportive Government policy on the language. It is a Fine Gael led Government which is presiding over the steadily declining support of rural communities be they English or Irish speaking. Will it be a Fine Gael led government which puts the final nail into another of the unique treasures of our country - our island communities?

A cavalier code! A €27m burden! #Eircode

“Speak Irish among yourselves, but don’t speak it to us!”.  (State policy to the Gaeltacht Regions as described by Seán Ó Cuirreáin 23 January 2014)

The so-called roll out of the "postal-code" called EirCode has been mired with controversy since it's launch last week.

Perhaps it most spectacular failure is in the insulting way in which it is treating the National Language and indeed the names of those who use the correct form of their surnames and in its cavalier attitude to the names of places in the Gaeltacht and outside it. It's own name EirCode which they obviously think refers cleverly to "Éire" (Ireland) in fact would appear to be more correctly based on "eire" (burden/load). In fact there are those who maintain that it is a €27million burden on the hard pressed Irish taxpayer.

The blame game!
The Department responsible for employing those who invented this system, the selection process of which broke EU laws for such tendering, referred complaints to the EirCode organisation who referred it back to An Post. An Post came up with the breathtaking answer that it was due to a "technical problem."

The Irish on-line news resource Tuairisc.ie and some other well known personalities have made public some of these. Indeed the writer himself has received notification addressed to "Owen Ó'Riain" which is a strange mixture of a Christian name I have never ever used and an even stranger Irish/English of spelling my surname with a "fada" AND an apostrophy. If they had wished to translate my fisrt name correctly then they ought to have used "John" as I was called after my grandfather whose name that was.

The writer of iGaeilge received his notificatio addressed to an anglacised variant of his surname without the inclusion of his first name at all. Perhaps "Concubhar" was beyond even the most inveterate anglophile.

In another delicious irony the envelope announcing the post code bears a return address without any postcode!

I wonder what technical problem would be able to change a persons name from "Eoin" to "Owen" in my case. And how could a technical issue work out that "Ó Ciardha" was "Carey" and not "Keery". Or that the lovely name of "Amhlaoibh" itself a Gaelicisation of the Scandanavian "Olav" but usually anglicised to "Humphrey", is changed to Auliffe.

Early warnings!
Conradh na Gaeilge had warned all through this process of possible problems especially with place names and indeed there are up to 50,000 address errors on the system which appears never to have gone to the Placenames resource on line, Logainm.ie to make sure that names were correct. The the names of places hereabouts (the Conamara Gaeltacht) have become an English/Irish pastiche being neither one thing or the other.

The fact that An Post, who have been blamed by EirCode for this debacle, are unable to use the code themselves speaks volumes.

The fact that our Government have been happy to waste €27million of our money on this is an entirely other matter.

Because of the deficiencies in the legislation setting his office up, the Coiminéir Teanga, has no function in this matter. Nevertheless, as in other cases, he will I am sure register any complaints he receives and relay the dissatisfaction of complainants to the Legislature.

Government continuing its policy of "fudge, farce, falshood?"

The derogation on Irish usage in the European Union was mentioned recently in the Dáil. This was instituted when Irish was recognised as an official language of the Union some 10 years ago in order to allow facilities, translators etc to be instituted. This expires at the end of 2016.

Liadh Ní Riada'a frustration. 

The effect of this derogation (the length of which is unprecidented in the European Union experience) was dramatically demonstrated when one of our members of the Europeam Parliment, Liadh Ní Riada was instructed to "Speak in another language...." at one of its meetings. Think of it, a member who from a Gaeltacht Area, whose mother tongue from the cradle it is, is forbidden from speaking in Irish, a recognised EU language, at an official parliamentary meeting.

Earlier this year a crowded meeting in Dublin's historic Wynn's Hotel was addressed by Dr Professor P. B. Ó Laighin and MEP Liadh Ní Riada among others. 

"I know that a decision in principle has been made
by the Government that the derogation will not be
ended by 31st December 2016 and that the  derogation
will be renewed from  the 1st January 2017." 

Dr Ó Laighin is an acknowledged expert on language matters in the European Union. At that meeting he stated that there was little need for this derogation to be continued from the end of 2016. In trying to ascertain the attitude of the current Government he approached various branches of  administration both in Europe and in Ireland. The EU sources all said that it was a matter solely for the Irish Government. When he approached the Government Departments he was frustrated and delayed again and again and was unable to get a clear response one way or another. (Indeed this writer was quite shocked at the discourtesy shown to such an esteemed expert in the field.) However from his experience and the talks that he did have with them he felt that he was able to make a statement on the matter. He put it up on the screen during his presentation. He stated baldly that "To my knowledge a decision in principle has been made by the Government .... that the derogation will be renewed from the 1st January 2017."

He also stated that there were virtually no reasons any more for the continuation of this derogation. There are translators available, the vocabulary for technical and legal terms is more complete that that of some fully recognised languages and indeed the European institutions are more than prepared to accommodate Irish on equal terms to the other smaller languages like Maltese, Estonian, Latvian etc. Indeed Irish was reported in the Irish Times (13 Nov 2013) as the 14th biggest language in the EU terminology database.  That Ireland and the Irish are ready for the ending of this derogation is without doubt. Indeed it is of great advantage to those whose mother or cradle language is Irish as things stand. Crucially many  jobs require applicants to have at least a “thorough knowledge” of an official EU language and “satisfactory knowledge” of either English, French or German. Many third level courses are available such as Kings Inns. The law school offers a number of Irish language courses that are designed to help graduates secure lucrative translation jobs in Europe including some non-degree courses. (cf Article in The 42 13/6/2015).

Government response?
The recent statement in response to a question in the Dáil - itself no paragon of virtue when it comes to facilitate the use of the National Language - elicited a response from the Minister of State for Gaeltacht Affairs, Joe McHugh TD which appears to confirm Dr Ó Laighin's assertion. (Source: Report in Irish from Seán Tadhg Ó Gairbhí in Tuairisc.ie 11 June 2015).

He said that an examination was been made by his department, the Taoiseach's Department and EU Institutions of the services at present provided in Irish and on “the potential to expand these services”.

In short, as in so many matters (and not only in the matter of the Language) the name of the game is obfuscation and pretence. The sort of thing that lead to the resignation in frustration of Seán Ó Cuirreáin, "The choice I had was to stand aside from my appointment as Coimisinéir Teanga on principle to draw attention to these matters or to continue in my role and, consequently, to participate in a pretence!" (to Oireachtas Committee 23 Jan 2014). He was the first Ombudsman to resign on a matter of principle in Ireland, and maybe in Europe, since the foundation of the state.

As many people have been saying of late there is little purpose in trying to rely on The Irish State in these matters. "There are stronger and more widespread forces in place (in the administration) who have little or no concern for the future of our national language." These are those, in the words of President Michael D Higgins, “for whom Irish was not half dead enough.” 

This is year 5 of the adopted 20 year scheme for Irish and this Government cannot point to any one of the recommendations that has been adopted - even those ones which would cost little or no money.

"As we begin to regain our economic sovereignty, it would be a travesty if we were to lose our linguistic sovereignty – a cornerstone of our cultural identity, heritage and soul as a nation. I believe this to be a clear and present danger." (Seán Ó Cuirreáin as he announces his resignation 6th December 2013).

It appears this belief is still valid some eighteen months later!

Maybe you could sign Liadh Ní Riada's petition to the Taoiseach!

"Let's do this!" - Invest in Identity! @SeoLinn Please RT (& help kick ass to grant culture!) #cicsatóin

At 10.47 - 3 Jul'15 there were 340 Backers 
€50,410 donated & 52 Hours to go!
Why not join 'em!

Here we are! How about a bit of uplifting news about Irish! And you, dear reader, have 28 days to make it happen!

Seo Linn showing what they can do - let's show 'em what we can do!

One of the reasons I set up this site was to report on happenings concerning Irish and the Gaeltacht areas especially with regard to language rights. This are for the most part ignored by the English language media except of course when there appears to be bad news. This means of course that the Irish media has an disproportionate amount of reporting in this area. A case in point is the recent publication of Conchur Ó Giollagáin's report update by Údarás na Gaeltachta. The reports in English Language media concentrated entirely on the negative aspects of the report. "Irish will be dead in ten years!" "The end of the Gaeltacht is nigh!" etc etc.

In passing  I wonder is that also what happens to these reports when, if ever, they cross a Government Minister's desk. Certainly the lack of adherence by the State to the advice the sought on language matters would lead one to that opinion. Indeed the situation lead the first Coimisinéir Teanga to state baldly. "I believe that the language is continuously being edged aside, pushed towards the margins of society and that includes much of the public sector. I would not support the premise that the fault lies primarily with politicians but it appears to me, notwithstanding those within the State sector who support the language, that there are stronger and more widespread forces in place who have little or no concern for the future of our national language."  Oireachtas Address 23 Jan 2014.

In reading most of these press stories it is obvious that these writers have only superficially examined the actual report. There was in fact some good news contained in this report which was highlighted by writers in the Irish electronic media. (Unfortunately there is no Irish print media any more since this has been forced off the face of the earth by the actions of State bodies!)
Gripe over (until the next time!)

Enterprising initiative!
But that is not what I want to talk about now but rather a story of independence shown by a group of talented young men who apparently realise the futility of engaging state bodies or indeed political parties have taken a bold initiative. In the colourful phrase of the writer of the iGaeilge blog "cic sa tóin do chultúr na ndeontaisí" (A kick in the arse to grant culture!).

This enterprising group, which perform as Seo Linn, who electrified the 10,000 people who marched on Lá Mór na Gaeilge (See more pics on their Facebook page) have already proved themselves musically and now want to share their expertese in music and language to the wider audience that the know are out there. They have achieved an incredible 4.6million viewings of one of their live performances in the Conamara Irish College, Coláiste Lurgan on YouTube. (Take a look - the words are included - and sing along!) They have performed on television and before President Michael D Higgins.

The inspiring thing about this initiative is that it ignores the usual well trodden paths used by Irish Language organisations braving the dispiriting, soul destroying and interminable bureaucracy seeking grants for their initiatives. Those who are lucky enough to be successful receive this largesse but often bound up with conditions that often times render the initiative ineffective. Without the grant of course the venture falls. A small coterie of enterprises have tried this "modh díreach" of start-up with reasonable success before now. This is an exciting one and worthy of our support!

So what are they planning?
They are going directly to the public with a request for €50,000. They have definite proposals they have a date when the initiative is a success or, God forbid, a failure. We'll know by the end of the month.

Let them speak for themselves: "Seo Linn are asking YOU for help. We know that we are on the path to generating a new kind of Irish music, one that has the potential to portray the Irish language in a progressive, relevant light. We want to make Irish available.

"We have thought long and hard about this and our biggest challenge right now is to raise this money. Our hard work over the past two years has gotten us to this point and we are ready to take on a new challenge! We are confident that we will overcome any obstacles that may appear in our way."

So what practically do the intend to do with this money? They outline three practical objectives.

1. Set up a Company that will provide music WORKSHOPS with the Irish language - These will incorporate the various elements of music production and performance into a polished, tried-and-tested workshop that teenagers will really enjoy.
2. Record and publicise an original ALBUM - We have so much music in our unique brand that we want to share with you. An album of our work would give life to Irish language music in Ireland and abroad along with providing us with the opportunity to expand our horizons as a band and progress up the ladder as recording artists.
3. TOUR - a crucial part of every band's road to success is touring and gigging. We want to bring our music all over the world and provide the show that gets people talking. Our unifying of the old and new of our cultural identity is an aspect to our show that doesn't go unnoticed and we pride ourselves on ensuring that everyone enjoys the experience.

"As you can see, we have a long, tough road ahead that every single one of us is relishing! With your help, we can make our dream a reality and do something that has never been done before. We have something to offer.. and this is our chance! Go raibh míle maith agaibh."

Click here to support us!

I see that they have over 9,000 followers on their facebook page, If each of those contributed €10 they will have exceeded their target handsomely.

As I write this article only 78 have backed them contributing amounts from €10 to €1000 (Yes €1000) and there are 28 days left to achieve the target. (Since we started writing about an hour ago it has risen to 82!)

When I first saw this I thought "Nah! not possible!" But then I saw the figure grow to €4000 in the first day and almost double on the second and I now believe it is eminently achievable!

In the words of the famous Buxton Water advert, Lets do this!"

Is you want to read what Tuairisc.ie has written about this and view another video.
€50,000 ag teastáil ó Seo Linn dá dtogra Kickstarter!(Irish)

And take a view of this unforgetable appearance on the Late Late Show.

No Irish to be spoken!

‘Declaration setting out the means for the conversion of the Irish and the elimination of the Irish language’ 

When Government agency, Foras na Gaeilge made a decision which finally destroyed the Irish daily and weekly newspapers they were superceded by a service on-line, Tuairisc.ie. This enterprise although excellent in its own way does not really replace the print media and indeed in many areas of the Gaeltacht it is not available at all due to lamentable internet availability.

Today their reporter, Maitiú Ó Coimín, has an interesting story (Irish) on decision to repeal a Cromwellian law the aims of which, some might say, the Government has been (inadvertently?) pursuing assiduously since its election four years ago. (There are even some who might say that the Government is also assiduously pursuing its proscriptions on Popish doctrine too but who am I to judge?)

Pic: Tuairisc.ie

This law is aimed at the "conversion of the Irish and the elimination of the Irish language!" It states baldly, ‘Persons between eleven and twenty must speak and use English only within a year. All under twelve must be taught English....Children to learn the catechism in English. No Irish to be spoken’

The correspondent maintains that the policy at that time failed because of a lack of state resources. Is it not ironic that the policy is now succeeding ostensibly be cause of lack of state resources but perhaps more because of the existence within the state bureaucracy of "stronger and more widespread forces ... who have little or no concern for the future of our national language." (Seán Ó Cuirreáin, 23/1/2014) Those for whom "Irish is not half dead enough!"

Can anyone deny today in 2015 that, even in the Gaeltacht, Irish speaking areas, persons between eleven and twenty are obliged to speak English, especially to the State and that, according to a recent study, those under twelve are already more fluent in English than their own language.

Repealing this law may be right but in looking at the state of Ireland today perhaps it could be viewed as an exercise in crass hypocracy.

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• Maitiú Ó Coimín has been nominated for Réalt Óg na Bliana (Young Star of the Year) in the Oireachtas Communications Competition this year.  He has been with Tuairisc.ie since it was set up last October and is a very prolific contributor ever since with interesting items like the one reported here.

This is how to vote for him:
Text: GRADAM105
To:  57003 (Within the Irish Telephone Area) or 60999 (within the British Telephone Area - N. Ireland or Gt Britain)

Comisinéir reports Department of Education to Oireachtas!

Only two local authorities compliant with state regulations.

An Coimisinéir Teanga
Rónán Ó Domhnaill

An Coimisinéir Teanga has reported the Department of Education and Skills to the Houses of the Oireachtas because it has failed to fulfil its obligations under the Education Act 1998. Rónán Ó Domhnaill said that the recommendations made as part of a statutory investigation were not satisfactorily implemented. The investigation revealed that an attempt was made to compel a Gaeltacht school into accepting the relocation of a teacher from a redeployment panel even though the school authorities and the teachers in question felt that the teachers had insufficient Irish to carry out their work in that language.

Referring to the case at the launch of his Annual Report (pdf), An Coimisinéir Teanga said “This is the first time that I have sent a case to the Houses of the Oireachtas, and the issue involved could not be more important. The Department of Education and Skills has not put a system in place which ensures that teachers teaching in Gaeltacht Schools and Gaelscoileanna are fluent in the Irish Language. I simply cannot accept that.”

94% of local authorities breaking law!
As part of the Office’s compliance activities in 2014, an audit was carried out on the level of compliance by local authorities with their obligation to have bilingual recorded oral announcements. Only two local authorities, Donegal and Laois, were found to have recorded messages in compliance with the regulations at public phone numbers. “This demonstrates the widespread lack of care for the language by the State generally; if local authorities aren’t complying with their language obligations, what hope does a citizen have in getting the proper service from the State generally?”

During 2014, An Coimisinéir Teanga instigated seven statutory investigations, and he issued a final report in respect of the Health Service Executive, Dublin Bus and the Railway Procurement Agency. “Generally, the investigations are as a result of a lack of awareness amongst public bodies of the most basic aspects of language legislation in Ireland.”

The original Irish release and the launching address of the Coimisinéir Teanga may be found here.

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Below are some keypoints and background from the report! 
The report itself is here pdf format may be found here. It is bilingual in both Irish & English.

Complaints and Investigations The Office of An Coimisinéir Teanga handled 709 new complaints during 2014, a 1% increase on 2013 (702). 88 complaint files were open at the end of 2014 in comparison with 72 at the end of 2013. The Office operates an informal resolution process as the first step of its investigative process which means that the majority of cases are resolved by discussing the matter with public bodies or by giving advice to citizens. 7 statutory investigations were instigated by the Coimisinéir during 2014 and a final report was issued in relation to the Health Service Executive, the Railway Procurement Agency and Dublin Bus.  Full details of these cases are available on pages 29-43 of the Annual Report (pdf). Language Schemes At the end of 2014, 99 language schemes were confirmed, which covered 113 public bodies. 53 of those 99 schemes were in place for longer than three years – the period of time by which public bodies are supposed to confirm a new scheme with the Minister. Although the number of schemes being confirmed by the Minister did increase, the average time that a scheme had lapsed also increased, from 32 months to 50 months. The Coimisinéir’s attitude in relation to language schemes has been set out clearly in speeches he has given to Oireachtas Committees and at public events, and in the statement he gave at the launch (Irish). Report to the Houses of the Oireachtas In the event that the Coimisinéir makes recommendations in a statutory investigation and that those recommendations are not implemented satisfactorily, the Coimisinéir may report this to the Houses of the Oireachtas. The Coimisinéir decided to send a report of this nature because he was not satisfied that recommendations made in an investigation of the Department of Education and Skills had been implemented.  Further information is available on page 40-45 of the 2013 Annual Report (pdf). Audit of Recorded Oral Announcements Under the regulations made under section 9(1) of the Official Languages Act 2003 (S.I. 391 of 2008) any recorded message at a public phone number in use by a public body, i.e. main number or section number, must be in Irish and in English. During 2014 the Office carried out an audit of recorded oral announcements in use by local authorities, and a very low level of compliance was found. A review is underway at present which has revealed a certain amount of improvement. Court Case On 20 February 2015 in the High Court, Judge Colm Mac Eochaidh refused the appeal being sought by the Revenue Commissioners on a decision by An Coimisinéir Teanga in a case which involved section 9(3) of the Official Languages Act 2003. An Coimisinéir Teanga welcomed the decision at the time and said “The most important thing for me as Coimisinéir is that citizens’ language rights are protected. I believe that today’s decision protects those rights.”  Details of the case may be found on pages 49-54 of the 2013 Annual Report (pdf)

Irish in the North!

The Stormont Administration has been inviting submissions prior to enacting an Irish Act (Acht Gaeilge). Various interested parties and the general public have submitted ideas and reccomendations over the last few months.

The end of the period is this evening and if you have not submitted your ideas directly to the relevent Department at consultations@dcalni.gov.uk before 17.00 This evening (5/52015).

However a "quick method" has been institued by Conradh na Gaeilge roughly based on their their own submissions and this may be used right now if you wish- Provisions for an Irish Language Act - It only takes a minute or two.