Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

I am glad the Ceann Comhairle is in the Chair because I wish to clarify the position in respect of the famous issue of placenames. When the placenames order came to me for signing, I identified a number of matters in respect of which controversy might arise. At the time, I was of the opinion that the most controversial issue related to some of the Irish forms proposed by the placenames branch and its experts. However, I did identify a number of other issues and challenges.

For the first time ever as regards the making of a placenames order, I decided that there would be a comprehensive consultation process. I stated that I would not be satisfied with pursuing the usual course, namely, placing a few advertisements in newspapers and taking the approach that if people saw these, then well and good. I indicated that I wanted it to be a real process. I directed my officials to place advertisements in the newspapers and on Raidió na Gaeltachta. I also directed them to write to every community council on Údarás na Gaeltachta's list of community organisations and to send each a copy of the placenames relevant to their areas. Údarás na Gaeltachta, the elected authority for the Gaeltacht and of which one of the Deputies opposite's good friend, Séamus Mac Gearailt, is a member, was also informed about what was happening and discussed the matter. After a long delay and having considered all the representations received — not one of which related to Dingle — I signed the order.

A point that is often overlooked in this debate is that up until I signed the order, there was no official Irish language version of any Gaeltacht placename. Officially, An Ceathrú Rua did not exist and the only name for the town was Carraroe. The Act also provided for the continued use of the English language versions of placenames by any citizen.

Despite the fact that Dingle is quite a sizeable Gaeltacht town and has received huge amounts of Údarás na Gaeltachta moneys, which has built factories, etc, there, I did not realise at the time that not one community organisation in the town was registered with Údarás as such. That is extraordinary and perhaps it explains how the great debate about this matter arose, particularly on the many programmes aired on Raidió na Gaeltachta.

I must stress that the ministerial order to which I refer contained thousands of placenames and despite all the debate that has taken place in recent years, only one town or locality has indicated that it did not agree with my decision. I asked Údarás na Gaeltachta to debate the issue again and its members overwhelmingly supported the placenames order. Any implication that this was imposed from the top onto Gaeltacht communities throughout the country does not, therefore, reflect the facts. I pay tribute to Deputy McGinley, a Gaeltacht person, who recognised from the outset that a huge number of people find the use of the term "Gortahork" for "Gorta a'Choirce" as somewhat anomalous, particularly as the town is situated in one of the strongest Gaeltacht areas in the country.

I always stated that if the people of Dingle asked me to do something that was legal, I would do it. I met the county manager, the mayor and a number of local councillors two to three years ago and made the latter quite clear to them. The simple answer would have been to ask me to rescind the order. If they had asked me to rescind it, I could have done so at the stroke of a pen. It is worth noting that they never put such a request to me.

This matter has now passed beyond my remit. It has been referred to the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government because those involved chose to proceed under the provisions of the 1946 Act. However, it is well known, even in Chorca Dhuibhne, that one's view on this issue depends on whether one is in the town of Dingle or outside it. Even then, there is not unanimity regarding how we should proceed. I hope that this issue can be put to bed, once and for all. However, it was important that I took this opportunity to put the record straight.

There has been a great deal of State policy. Much of this is justified because a raft of such policy dates from the past. However, we should not underestimate our achievements in respect of the Irish language. Oireachtas na Gaeilge shows the modern face of Irish. It shows young people speaking the language because they want to do so. These individuals are from Gaeltacht and non-Gaeltacht backgrounds and they all mix happily. There is no compulsion on those who attend. We must, however, give credit to the Irish language organisations, which are often lambasted, for the work they have done quietly and behind the scenes. If Cathair na Mart were offered the Oireachtas tomorrow, it would more than welcome it back not only because of the language considerations, but also because of the type of people it attracted. I congratulate Piaras Ó Raghallaigh on what he has done and on the fantastic Oireachtas that took place.

An anonymous writer stated 150 years ago that the Irish language would be dead in two generations and that it was beyond saving. In 1950, a report based on the scéim labhairt na Gaeilge and the census from the period 1946-7 estimated that there were only 35,000 native speakers left in the Gaeltacht. When one considers the level of emigration in the 1950s and the age profile of those involved, the fact that there are still 22,000 people in the Gaeltacht and outside the education system who still speak Irish on a daily basis shows the extraordinary resilience of the language. In the analysis carried out at the time to which I refer, the Gaeltachtaí were thinly spread throughout the country, located in small areas and under a great deal of pressure. In my view, the fact that 22,000 people still speak Irish shows that there is continued interest in it.

I will double check the position in respect of the number of people who speak Irish. I checked the number in recent days and to my knowledge the absolute number increased in the recent census. What has decreased is the percentage involved. The reason for this is that 10% of the people living in Ireland were not born here. If that percentage is removed, the figure readjusts to its previous level. It is a simple and easy explanation and it makes mathematical sense. The absolute number has increased because the population has also increased.

On the 1.6 million people whom it was stated can speak Irish, I accept that this figure represents those with very little Irish, those with a better level and so on. Unfortunately, the figure does not include people such as Deputies Ring and Stanton, who have a great grá for the language but who are not perhaps very fluent. I do not know what Deputy Ring wrote on his census form in this regard. Let us compare the position of people with varying levels of knowledge of Irish to that of their counterparts in Scotland. In 1950, the number of Scots Gaelic speakers was 100,000 and now it is down to 69,000. They do not have what we do, namely, a large number of people with some knowledge of the language. These people are incredibly important. A large part of the audience of TG4 is made up of people who do not speak Irish every day but who feel comfortable watching Irish language programmes and listening to commentaries of matches in Irish. If that audience was lost, major questions would be asked about the viability of TG4.

If TG4 was totally dependent on the 83,000 people who speak Irish daily outside the education system, it would be far worse off. A large pool of people watch Ros na Rún and all types of programmes on TG4. In Croke Park everybody claps before it is translated into English when somebody announces: "Níl aon athrú ar ceachtar den dá fhoireann. Imreoidh siad mar a roghnaíodh iad." With modern technology, they are becoming more and more part of the Irish-using section of society and we should never denigrate them. How many people do we see interviewed on TG4 who do not use Irish every day? They are quite capable of conducting a face to face interview on TG4. It seems TG4 and Raidió na Gaeltachta can get somebody to speak on every subject under the sun from every corner of the country.

I must nail the myth about the Official Languages Act.

See this speech in context