Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)

I move amendment No. 1:

In page 6, line 23, to delete "ensure that" and substitute "encourage an outcome whereby".

The reason the Labour Party has tabled this amendment is that the use of the word "ensure" in section 1(2) of the Bill causes us concern. It states,"The Council shall have regard to Government policy on bilingualism". This refers to the council of the Honourable Society of King's Inns. The provision of having regard to the status of the Irish language as the first official language was brought in by way of amendment by the Minister on Committee Stage. The phrase that had been there earlier was the Government policy on bilingualism. I pointed out to the Minister on Second Stage that Government policy should in that instance be public policy so there were a couple of issues. However, the major issue here is that the council should in so far as is reasonable for it to do so, seek to ensure that an adequate number of barristers are competent in the Irish language so as to be able to practise law through the Irish language as well as through the English language.

Amendment No. 7 is identical but it relates to the Law Society of Ireland and to solicitors and is the same principle.

I wish to make the point that "ensure" is mandatory language which is very much at odds with the voluntarist thrust of the Bill. The Competition Authority which looked at this issue recommended that this course should be voluntary. We are concerned that this could lead to a wrong interpretation and certainly with regard to people with a fundamentalist view about compulsory Irish there could be problems arising in the future. The formula of words which the Labour Party proposes encourages an outcome whereby we say this is very much in line with the whole spirit of this Bill and the spirit of what is happening here. I await the Minister of State's response to this specific issue, that the words, "ensure that" be deleted and be replaced by "encourage an outcome whereby", in the context of an adequate number of solicitors and barristers available to conduct court cases through Irish.

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