Written answers
Tuesday, 1 October 2013
Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation
Official Languages Act 2003 Compliance
Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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303. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the arrangements put in place by his Department to ensure compliance with the Official Languages Act, specifically requirements for signage in departmental offices, schools and third level institutions; details of any assessments undertaken by departmental staff to assess requirements; the number of signs assessed; when any corrective actions were put in place; if any or all of the actions taken by his Department were within the designated timeframes set out in legislation, and if not the reasoning for same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40549/13]
Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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S.I. no 391 of 2008, made under Section 9 (1) of the Official Languages Act, 2003 by the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, requires that public bodies must ensure that: a system is in place to confirm that all new signs placed by the public body or on its behalf after 1 March, 2009 comply with the criteria set out in the regulations; any signs placed at any location before 1 March, 2009 but containing an error in the text have been amended by 1 March, 2012; and any signs placed at any location before 1 March, 2009 with the text in English only have been amended by 1 March, 2013.
I can confirm that arrangements are in place in my Department and its Offices to ensure compliance with the requirements of this S.I.
With regard to the requirement to amend signage by the March 2013 deadline, the vast majority of signs in the areas of my Department and its Offices to which the public have access are in both Irish and English. Work is currently at an advanced stage with a view to ensuring that all signs in all buildings of my Department and its Offices are compliant with the requirements of S.I. no 391 of 2008.
The following table shows the position for each building/Office of my Department with regard to meeting the requirements of S.I. no 391 of 2008:
| Building/Office | Current Position |
|---|---|
| Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, 23 Kildare Street, Dublin 2. | The majority of signs in areas accessed by members of the public are in Irish and English. An assessment of signage was undertaken in early 2013. Following a procurement process, a contractor has been engaged to produce new signage which meets the requirements of S.I. no 391 of 2008. |
| Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Davitt House, 65A Adelaide Road, Dublin 2. | The majority of signs in areas accessed by members of the public are in Irish and English. An assessment of signage was undertaken in early 2013. Following a procurement process, a contractor has been engaged to produce new signage which meets the requirement of S.I. no 391 of 2008. |
| Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Earlsfort Centre, Lower Hatch Street, Dublin 2. | The majority of signs in areas accessed by members of the public are in Irish and English. An assessment of signage was undertaken in early 2013. Following a procurement process, a contractor has been engaged to produce new signage which meets the requirement of S.I. no 391 of 2008. |
| Companies Registration Office (CRO), 14 Parnell Square, Dublin 1. | An assessment of signage was undertaken in 2012 following meetings between CRO and An Coimisinéir Teanga. The old signage was replaced and all the signage has been in compliance with S.I. no 391 of 2008 since March 2013. |
| Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement (ODCE), 16 Parnell Square, Dublin 1. | An assessment of the signs that require change has been undertaken. While many of these signs are bilingual, they are not fully compliant due to the size of the font. The Office is currently addressing the further steps required for full compliance. |
| Labour Relations Commission, Tom Johnson House, Haddington Road, Dublin 4. | A number of signs in areas accessed by members of the public are in Irish and English. There are a number of signs in internal areas of the building which require assessment and this will be conducted shortly. |
| Labour Court, Tom Johnson House, Haddington Road, Dublin 4. | A number of signs in areas accessed by members of the public are in Irish and English. There are a number of signs in internal areas of the building which require assessment and this will be conducted shortly. |
| Equality Tribunal, Clonmel Street, Dublin 2. | All signage in public areas is displayed in both Irish and English. Work is currently underway to translate all other signs into Irish in accordance with the provisions of S.I. no 391 of 2008. |
| Patents Office, Government Buildings, Hebron Road, Kilkenny. | Most of the signage is in compliance with S.I. no 391 of 2008. However, in a small number of instances further work is required to ensure full compliance and this work is currently in hand. |
| National Employment Rights Authority (NERA) offices in Carlow, Cork, Dublin Shannon and Sligo | All appropriate signs in all NERA's offices comply with requirements of S.I. no 391 of 2008. However, there are three external signs which are bilingual with the English translation appearing before the Irish translation. As a change to the title of NERA is anticipated with the establishment of the new workplace relations body, it was considered prudent to await the new title before amending these signs. |
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