Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Government amendment which demonstrates that we are fully committed to the agreements that underpin the Northern Executive. The Government is working with the Executive to finalise the work commenced with the signing of the Good Friday Agreement 15 years ago.

As my time is limited, I will focus on one aspect of the motion, namely, the proposal to introduce an Irish language Act, as agreed at St. Andrews. As Deputies may be aware, I was fortunate to chair the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement before Deputy Joe McHugh was appointed to that position. While in that role, I visited Belfast with members of the joint committee where we visited the cross-community Cúlturlann McAdam Ó Fiach, a culture and arts centre on the Falls Road. The centre has a restaurant, theatre, gallery and bookshop and caters for matters concerning the Irish language. The name of the centre was chosen to reflect both communities in Belfast. The Cúlturlann does not have any political affiliation. It was started through local grassroots advocacy with the objective of promoting the Irish language. It is located in a flourishing Gaeltacht area and people from the local streets socialise in the centre and use its facilities to improve their Irish language skills. It is the type of cross-community centre that would benefit from the greater recognition an Irish language Act would afford.

There have been some positive developments in delivering an Irish language Act in recent years. The Northern Ireland Minister for Culture, Arts and Leisure, Ms Carál Ní Chuilín, for example, published draft strategies on an Irish language Act and Ulster-Scots Act in July 2012. Public consultation was invited and many comments were received on the strategies. I pay tribute to the work the Minister is doing on the Líofa 2015 project, which seeks to encourage 5,000 people from all walks of life in the North to take up and become fluent in the Irish language by 2015. Like any good Minister, Ms Ní Chuilín is leading from the front by becoming fluent in Irish. I follow her tweets on the subject on a daily basis.

Other positive developments include the digital cross-over last year, which resulted in TG4 and Raidió na Gaeltachta becoming available in Northern Ireland. This fulfils one of the commitments made under the Good Friday Agreement.

The Government is taking seriously the issue of implementing an Irish language Act in Northern Ireland. The Tánaiste has met many Irish language groups to discuss this subject and he and his Department will continue to work to get the Act over the line. As we all know, this is a key part of the St. Andrews Agreement and it is in everyone's interest that this objective is achieved.

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