Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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62. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform further to Parliamentary Question No. 62 of 1 March 2023, the status of his Department’s work to date on the implementation of the Official Languages (Amendment) Act 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22138/23]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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As the deputy is aware, the Irish Language Services Advisory Committee was established by the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media in June 2022 pursuant to section 18 of the Official Languages (Amendment) Act 2021. Since then, representatives from my Department and the Public Appointments Service have been actively participating in this Committee through attendance at regular meetings and other bilateral conversations.

Under the Act, the primary focus of this Committee is to prepare a National Plan for Irish Language Services, which is to be submitted to the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media for approval by mid-2024. The overarching goal of this plan is to reach the ambitious recruitment target laid down in Act that at least 20% of staff recruited to public bodies are competent in the Irish language by 31 December 2030.

In addition to the work of this Committee, existing civil servants are being encouraged to pursue Irish language training courses via OneLearning, the Learning and Development Centre for the civil service based in my Department. At the start of 2023, OneLearning launched a new term of Irish language courses which commenced on the 6^thMarch, 2023 with 278 individuals enrolled.

Courses provided by Gaelchultúr to civil servants on behalf of OneLearning for 2023 are partially certified by Teastas Eorpach na Gaeilge (“TEG”). TEG, provides a series of general Irish language proficiency examinations and qualifications and is the first certified system of its kind for adult learners of the Irish language in Ireland. The autumn term of Irish courses will be open for enrolment during the summer months.

With the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, on which the TEG system is based, specifically mentioned in the Official Languages (Amendment) Act 2021, TEG qualifications will hold a particular value in the coming years for both learners and employers alike, as people with particular language skills will be sought for a wide variety of diverse roles across the civil and public service. My Department, in conjunction with colleagues at the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, are examining ways to further support Irish-language learners within the system as well as create more awareness around the language in general. One such additional measure to be taken is the addition of language awareness elements to some of OneLearning’s courses, focusing initially on customer service and junior managers.

In relation to the dedicated recruitment and promotion competitions targeted at Irish language speakers, PAS has held general civil service competitions for individuals with fluency in Irish at Clerical Officer, Executive Officer, Higher Executive Officer and Principal Officer levels. There are currently panels in place for Irish posts at CO, EO and HEO levels and these panels will be drawn from as requests are received from Departments and Offices. The CO panel is due to expire on 30^thJune 2023, the EO panel is due to expire on 29^thFebruary 2024 and HEO panel on 31^stDecember 2023.

PAS are still working on the general CO 2022 competition to fill roles with an Irish language requirement when notified of requests.

There is an Irish Stream in the new CO regional competition that launched in April this year, and PAS have the capacity to invite candidates to interview from that, based on requests received. Panels from CO Regional 2023 will be in place until the end of June 2024. It’s anticipated that a new CO Dublin competition will also advertise before the end of Q2 with an Irish Stream. New competitions are also being considered for EO and HEO Irish.

In addition, some Departments or Government Officers may also plan to recruit fluent speakers directly under their local recruitment licence instead of through PAS.