Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Question 192: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation the cost to his Department of sign replacement resulting from the requirement of the Department and all agencies and bodies under the Department's remit to replace signs which were in place prior to March 2009 where the existing signs in Irish did not or would not meet the requirements in terms of Irish text required by 2012. [7196/11]

Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Question 193: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation the anticipated cost to his Department of ensuring compliance by the Department and by all agencies and bodies under its remit with the requirements under the Official Languages Act 2003 to replace any sign currently in English only by March 2013. [7211/11]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 192 and 193 together.

My Department plans to commence an audit in the near future of all signs currently on display in the Department and in the 8 Offices of the Department, in order to assess what signs will need to be replaced, so as to fully comply with the provisions of the Official Languages Act 2003 and particularly with Section 6 of S.I No. 391 of 2008 made by the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs under the 2003 Act. The obligations on the Department and the Offices of the Department to comply with the signage requirements of the Official Languages Act outlined by the Deputy will come into operation on 1 March 2012/ 1 March 2013. The Deputy will, therefore, appreciate that at this juncture it is too early to estimate how many signs in the Department and in the Offices of the Department will need to be replaced and what the anticipated costs will be.

I am not in a position to provide information in relation to the Agencies of my Department, as this is a day to day administrative matter for the Agencies concerned.