Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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212. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the percentage of staff in his Department capable of dealing with the public in the Irish language; if there are training programmes in place for staff to improve their level of working Irish; the provision there is for other minority languages; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38625/15]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade attaches a high priority to language proficiency. In accordance with the Official Languages Act 2003 and the 20-Year Strategy for the Irish Language, my Department is committed toincreasing the number of functional bilingual officials, to promoting the use of the Irish language and to delivering services in Irish. The most recent skills audit of all staff revealed that 55 staff members in my Department had advanced or fluent Irish language skills, while a further 160 officers declared that their Irish language skills were at an intermediate level. This is approximately 20% of permanent HQ-based staff.

My Department fully supports all staff in the development and maintenance of their Irish language proficiency and has provided in-house classes in recent years, which over 200 officers registered to attend, with a particular emphasis on staff in our public offices. Officers at our diplomatic missions may also avail of Irish language classes, particularly in countries with large diaspora communities. New, intensive and targeted courses were delivered this year to officers going on post in an effort to further enhance the capacity of our overseas missions to promote the use of the Irish language abroad.

Officers are also encouraged to develop their Irish language skills in their own time and my Department is happy to fund appropriate and relevant tuition undertaken outside office hours.

While our staff at home are required to provide services through Irish and English, foreign language proficiency is regarded as an important skill in an officer’s career development and the conduct of their duties when serving abroad. Language training, across a wide range of languages, is made available to officers in advance of posting and during their time at Missions overseas. Funding is also provided for staff at HQ. Language training is supported using a variety of methods, including; in-house classes, evening courses, intensive tuition, immersion courses, online courses and the use of self-learning materials.