Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Words are no use.

There is a huge disparity between what the Minister of State is saying and what I am being told. If this is what the Minister and the Department understand to be a robust commitment to the 20-year strategy, then serious questions have to be answered, and níl aon fhreagra anseo. When the budget was being delivered, the Ministers for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform spoke about the kind of Ireland we want to create. Surely that ought to include a more passionate and resourced commitment to the growth and study of our Irish language. Without our teanga we will not have a nation. I strongly believe that. We need a commitment that the cuts to funding allocations will be reversed and increased. The Minister of State can mention funding of €13 million here and €13 million there but that is not the reality on the ground. Níl pingin ar fáil do a lán grúpaí. If there is anything less than this, the Government will be clearly demonstrating that when it comes to the Irish language lip-service continues to be the order of the day. Tá a fhios agam go bhfuil Gaeilge flúirseach na Gaillimhe ag an Aire Stáit. The reality is that the groups are not getting funding. The Minister of State did not answer my question concerning the 40% cut for Seachtain na Gaeilge. Everybody bought into that initiative, both grupaí na Gaeilge agus grupaí an Bhéarla. A lán communities used that funding for Seachtain na Gaeilge projects but they have been drastically cut. We have to get people interested.

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