Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate Deputy Canney for his iarracht, his effort to go back learning Irish. Many people talk about doing it. I was one of those people who talked about it for the best part of two decades. That was up to the point when I was put in a corner and had no choice. It was either sink or swim. My experience is different to most people but anybody who makes that decision to go back and learn has to be admired. Deputy Canney will also act as an inspiration for people in his constituency, so well done.

The Deputy has already spoken to me about the Claregalway sign and I have had a number of other representations from Galway, including from Councillor Frank Kearney. I have already asked my officials to organise a meeting with a delegation from Galway, including Deputy Canney, Councillor Kearney and whomever else wants to be part of it. We would be happy to facilitate that.

There was another matter. It was the teaching of Irish. We are fortunate at the moment with the calibre of education we have. I see my children coming home from school. It is not the usual doing of homework by ticking boxes. They have to use their imagination. My kids are in a non-Gaeltacht school but they are doing great work and they are creative with the language. It is a different type of experience now compared to some of the more negative experiences some of us had. Going back 30 or 40 years, some people say they were taught in a positive way as well. It was for some and not for others. There is an issue with the demand for Irish teachers at the moment but part of the Gaeltacht policy is trying to encourage more people to go in and look at the different funding streams for training. We are doing quite an amount of work on that.

There was also a question about the number of Gaelscoileanna built this year. I am going to get those figures. I will put those I have on the record. Of the 30 new primary schools established since 2011, seven were Gaelscoileanna. There are 47,614 pupils in Gaelscoileanna outside the Gaeltacht. Of those, 37,090 are in the bunscoileanna. There are 59,084 pupils in Irish-medium education. There are 189 Gaelscoileanna outside of the Gaeltacht areas, that is 145 bunscoileanna and 44 secondary schools. There are 134 Irish-medium schools in Gaeltacht areas. That is 106 primary schools and 28 secondary schools. The stand-out figure is that there are 59,084 people going through the medium of Irish and learning Irish in primary school and secondary school.

That bodes well for the future, especially when we look to provide opportunities for people as translators and interpreters in Brussels and Strasbourg. Those are well paid jobs and there is no great tax on them. It is €4,500 per month for people who are proficient in Irish. That is an unbelievable opportunity, especially at a time when there is much talk in different countries regarding the EU and either remaining or leaving it. We have an opportunity as part of the EU and there are tremendous opportunities. That message has to go out not just to the 59,000 people in the Gaelscoileanna but also to the people who are learning Irish outside that category as well.