Niall Ó Donnghaile (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Irish language groups in the North in the context of the talks in which the Minister, Deputy Coveney, is taking part have made an appeal in recent days to the party leaders, the British Secretary of State, Karen Bradley, and the Minister, Deputy Coveney, to meet the groups and organisations in the Irish language sector who live their lives, work and contribute to society day in day out, to hear the experience of that community, and to cut through some of the mistruths, ignorance and, in many cases, bigotry expressed towards that community. The people who sent that letter to the Minister on behalf of the Irish-speaking community have yet to receive an acknowledgement. I respectfully urge the officials to take that on board, that they would seek to engage with that sector and, most importantly, that they would meet and hear from them and understand, not the media narrative that exists around the Irish-speaking population, but the reality.