David Norris (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Tá mé aosta anois agus ní maith liom an Ghaeilge nua. Mar shampla, b'fhearr liom an cló Gaelach. D'úsáid mé an cló Gaelach nuair a bhí mé óg agus ag scríobh agus it was absolutely wonderful. Le críoch, tharla a lán rudaí deasa le linn an toghchán uachtaránach deireannach, but one of the best of those was the debate as Gaeilge on Teilifís na Gaeilge in Indreabhán. The hacks, whom I loathe and despise, uniquely and severally, did one lovely thing for me then, they awarded me a tied first place in that debate with Michael D. Higgins. It came as such a surprise to them that a the little Protestant fairy from Coláiste na Trionóide could waltz in and speak Irish, even haltingly. Trinity College has a glorious record in that regard, going back as far as the great Bishop Bedell who translated the Book of Common Prayer into Irish, and Queen Elizabeth provided the first Irish print font there.

The final thing I will say - This is a secret and not many people know it. I probably should not even say it - is that a number of my colleagues in the presidential race, not the current President who is very fluent in Irish, had no Irish at all. They had to have their Irish written up on screens phonetically for them. It was obvious from the way they spoke, they did not have a clue what they were saying. That is rather sad. Is fíor é an seanfhocal "Tír gan teanga, tír gan anam".