Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)

My colleague, Deputy McGinley, has said it often here that the loss of Foinse is a big loss to the Irish language and, particularly, to teachers and students doing the leaving certificate. They looked to Foinse for assistance. It is appalling that we cannot have even one Irish language paper. Will the Minister put pressure on Foras na Gaeilge to ensure that whatever grant aid is required by the group seeking to reproduce this Irish language newspaper is available and that Foras na Gaeilge announces quickly who has won the contract so that the paper can be up and running again before Christmas. The paper is a big loss to Irish language speakers, to the Gaeltacht and to the people who lost their jobs. I hope some of these people will be re-employed. Some of the people involved used to cover the Irish language issues in the Dáil. I hope the Minister will arrange everything behind the scenes to ensure the paper is up and running soon.

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