John Deasy (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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Question 191: To ask the Taoiseach the expenditure on advertising in the Irish language by his Department and by agencies under the aegis of his Department since the enactment of the Official Languages Act 2003; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30399/08]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Since the enactment of the Official Languages Act in 2003, my Department and agencies have spent €2,969.64 on advertisements in Irish alone and €385,681.25 on advertisements in both Irish and English. Assuming that something less than half of the latter cost relates to the content in Irish, the total amount requested by the Deputy is less than €195,810.27.

These costs relate in the main to public notices for events such as the National Day of Commemoration and the 1916 Commemoration, and to public consultation processes such as the recent OECD Review. It has long been the practice of my Department to publish such notices in both of the official languages. This practice pre-dates the enactment of the Official Languages Act and demonstrates my Department's ongoing commitment to providing a high standard of service in both languages to our customers.