Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate that, like many of us, the Minister and Fianna Fáil are trying to grapple with this issue. We want to facilitate the ability of a child who has been reared through Irish to access education through his or her native tongue. That is reasonable. In fairness, Senator Gallagher has made a good fist of trying to devise a solution.

Will the Minister confirm that he will continue to engage with those representative groups with concerns? They understand that he is doing his best. Will he communicate to me that there will be proper consultation with them in bringing to the fore what he is trying to achieve? Given that Irish is the first language of the State, a child who is reared through that language not being disadvantaged in the enrolment system when trying to access a Gaelscoil is a constitutional right.It would appear to me to be reasonable to have a certain number of places set aside for children from an Irish speaking background, but how to attest to that will be the difficulty. The Minister will have the support of Senators for his endeavours and we appreciate the sentiment behind the amendment.