Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

Tá an-áthas orm an Bille seo a chur os comhair an Tí. Baineann sé le hOllscoil na Gaillimhe agus a riachtanais chun poist a thabhairt do dhaoine áirithe. Chomh maith leis sin, baineann sé leis an Ghaeilge. Tar éis na mblianta, is gá athrú a dhéanamh ar a riachtanais, agus sin an fáth go bhfuil mé ag tabhairt an Bhille seo os comhair an Tí.

This Bill amends the University College Galway Act 1929 to remove the requirement to appoint candidates competent in the Irish language to offices or positions in the university and replaces it with an obligation to ensure that the strategic development plan of the university contains a provision for the delivery of education through the Irish language. This provision also obliges the president and the governing authority of the university to ensure that this aim is implemented.

While a provision which gave preference in staff appointments to persons who demonstrated competency in the Irish language may have been considered appropriate at that time, it is not at this stage the best instrument for the promotion and preservation of the Irish language. The presence of such a provision in legislation can be seen as creating an impediment to the recruitment of suitably-qualified personnel in the context of a modern university and the many demands which are made on it. In fact, it has given rise to a number of court cases by applicants for jobs who allege that the Irish requirement has been used to discriminate against them. Clearly, it is quite possible that such controversy has unwittingly created a negative image of a language which many of us cherish.

This House is aware of the importance which the Government attaches to third level education and the role it plays in economic and social development in Ireland. When, earlier this week, I elaborated on the additional €1.2 billion investment which the Government is making in higher education over the next five years, I stated that our higher education institutions face many challenges. Central to these is the production of high-quality, skilled graduates at third level and cutting-edge research and development at fourth level. This is essential for protecting and creating jobs and retaining Ireland's competitive edge in the new world economy.

An ability to recruit the best-qualified available personnel is central to meeting these challenges. This is particularly so in the area of science and technology where the National University of Ireland, Galway, NUIG, has had significant success in attracting research funding under programmes such as the programme for research in third level institutions. While many high-level researchers will come through our own education system, if we are to meet anticipated levels of demand and ensure that research in Ireland is at the leading edge of international activity, it is essential that we also attract research talent from abroad. It is anticipated that up to 4,000 researchers will come to Ireland between now and 2013. Recruiting researchers on the global stage is very competitive. In that context, the existing legislative provisions in the 1929 Act would hinder NUIG as it seeks to compete for and attract the most sought after international academics.

Against that background, the president and governing authority of NUIG sought my support to amend the 1929 Act and replace it with a more appropriate wording. This Bill has been prepared in close consultation with my colleague, the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. The proposed amendment will replace the original provision with a commitment that the university, in its strategic development plan, will include in its statement of objectives and priorities, a commitment to the provision of university education through the Irish language. I am confident that this amendment strikes the correct balance between the continuation of NUIG's role in the promotion of the Irish language and the need to ensure that NUIG can fulfil the role which higher education institutions are required to play in the realisation of national economic and social development.

I am also confident that the president and governing authority of NUIG will ensure the university's commitment to the Irish language will remain steadfast. The current five-year strategic plan, which brings us to 2008, is evidence of this commitment. It seeks to develop new structures and approaches to support the sustainable development of Irish medium teaching and research activities through, for example, the further development of Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge, a centre where Irish will be the medium of instruction. This complements the activities of existing university education centres in the Gaeltacht —Áras Uí Chadhain in An Ceathrú Rua, Áras Shorcha Ní Ghuairim in Carna and Ionad na hOllscoile in Gaoth Dobhair. The plan also promises to support teaching in Irish through the introduction of incentives for staff to produce quality academic material for teaching and-or research programmes as Gaeilge.

NUIG will also ensure that structures and adequate resources are in place to support this. The university will undertake a series of actions to support the development of a bilingual campus, including provision of a diploma in Irish for students and staff alike and the development of cultural and social activities through the medium of Irish. All these actions demonstrate the commitment of NUIG to further enhance its very strong commitment to the delivery of third level education through Irish.

This Bill is also set against the context of the Government's own commitment to the Irish language. The Official Languages Act is clear evidence of its determination to ensure that there is a statutory framework for the delivery of services through the Irish language. The Act specifies some basic general provisions of universal applicability, including responding to correspondence in the language in which it was written, providing information to the public in the Irish language, bilingual publications of certain key documents and the use of Irish in the courts. All third level institutions, including universities, are covered by the provisions of the Act. In addition, under section 11 of the Act, the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs may require any body covered by the Act to prepare a draft scheme indicating its plans for the implementation of the Act. NUIG's scheme is now in place with effect from 1 September 2005 and it complements the programme for promotion of Irish outlined in the college's strategic plan.

I emphasise that I am reluctant to see the delivery of third level education through the medium of Irish as being the sole responsibility of NUIG.