Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 88: To ask the Minister for Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs his views on whether the €300,000 spent on translating county development plans into Irish (details supplied) could have been spent on developing the use of the Irish language in some other way; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39303/10]

Pat Carey (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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Since the Official Languages Act was enacted in 2003, my Department has been conscious of the need to operate it in as efficient and cost-effective manner as possible. In relation to the publication of official documents in bilingual format, I am strongly of the view that documents which fall under section 10 of the Act, such as Annual Reports and Statements of Strategy, should be published by way of CDs or the internet, rather than hard copy. I am aware that a number of public bodies already follow this practice. Indeed, the Coimisinéir Teanga specifically advocates this approach to public bodies in the Guidebook on the Act that his Office published and circulated to all bodies in 2008.

There are also other ways in which public bodies can achieve greater cost-effectiveness in the area of translation, for example, by planning for translation earlier in the process and by the greater use of standardised templates for documents such as annual reports. The development by Foras na Gaeilge of a number of support services, including the roll-out of the accreditation system for translators and the development of an Irish Language Translation Memory Resource for public bodies, will also help to ensure that such bodies receive a translation product that is reliable and meets a high standard.

The Official Languages Act requires local authority draft development plans to be produced simultaneously in Irish and English since they are key consultation documents. The requirement to publish official documents in Irish is strictly limited to very specific documents and does not encompass all official documents as often suggested in the media. I would also make the point that the numbers of hard copies of draft development plans in Irish sold to the public is not a measure of their usage since they can be consulted or downloaded free-of-charge from local authority websites. It is important that local authorities encourage the public to engage with them and with the planning process in Irish as well as English. To do otherwise would marginalise the Irish language by excluding it from this important area of public affairs. It is counterproductive to promote Irish as our national language in education and other areas if we do not facilitate its usage by the public in their interaction with the state and its agencies, local authorities included.