Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour)
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Question 325: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the cost to her Department, in each year since its introduction, of implementing the provisions of the Official Languages Act 2003; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3415/09]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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Providing a quality customer service in Irish has been a priority of the Department both prior and subsequent to the introduction of the Official Languages Act in mid-2003. It is not possible, therefore, to state precisely what amount of the total expenditure on the service in Irish arises from the implementation of the Act. Provision of services through Irish requires investment in a range of supports including staff training in spoken and written Irish, translation of forms, leaflets and other documentation, and the provision of bilingual signage in public areas. The following outlines expenditure in relation to these areas in the period 2003 to 2008:

Additional costs such as translations carried out by departmental staff and certain printing costs, are incurred in supporting services in Irish, but these can not be quantified.