Mr. Michael Parsons:

It is in all sorts of different ways. When I spoke earlier, I was foolish just to say the arts. I meant our links with all cultural organisations, including Irish language organisations. For example, a lovely project we supported was on field names in County Kilkenny. It looked at the old Irish names and the English names. We got people from all over County Kilkenny to chart down their field names and their sense of place. There was one in English that made me smile. It was "Paradise". I do not know what happened in that field, but in general it was a marvellous expedition of a whole world that could quickly be lost to us all.

This goes back to identity. Sorry for rambling, but identity is a tricky one. For example, in Portlaoise where I am from, we are talking about perhaps up to one third of the people not having been born in Ireland.

We have to include them. We must remember our own people who have gone to other countries - our diaspora - but identity is there and certainly the language is part of it. I have read Fintan O'Toole, with whom I do not always agree, but I felt he raised some very interesting questions.