Michael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fíorfháilte romhat, Linda. Déarfaidh mé cúpla focal as Béarla. My grandfather, Eoin MacNeill, was, with Douglas Hyde, the co-founder of the Gaelic League. In 1913, Douglas Hyde was sidelined a little bit from the Gaelic League movement because it was politicised. My grandfather always regretted that was done to Douglas Hyde.

I agree with Senator Kyne. One of the great tragedies about the considerable amount of time that has been put into the teaching of Irish in this jurisdiction is that when children put down the pen on the leaving certificate, they never speak Irish again and are not in a position to conduct an ordinary conversation in Irish on day-to-day matters.

I agree completely with you, Linda, that it is a shared heritage. The Irish language must not be weaponised. It must be viewed as a commonly held resource. I congratulate you on everything you are doing and wish you every success in your efforts in the future.