Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Firstly it is acknowledged that this question was accepted on transfer from the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (DFHERIS) and that the Deputy therefore has a particular interest in the interactions between that Department and the secretariat of the Irish Language Services Advisory Committee provided by my Department. The below information is therefore given in that context.

The Irish Language Services Advisory Committee was established by my Department in June 2022 in accordance with section 18A of the Official Languages (Amendment) Act 2021. The Committee’s primary focus during its first two years is the preparation of the first National Plan for Irish-medium Public Services to ensure its delivery by the statutory deadline of 19 June 2024.

In line with their functions under the Act, the Committee opted to commission research in this regard at its first meeting and a research contract was subsequently agreed with the University of Galway at the end of 2022. The research team presented their work to date to the Committee during the summer and are due to present a further progress update at its upcoming meeting at the end of this month. This research and the Plan overall will look to:

• identify the gaps in the current provision of public services through the medium of Irish and propose strategies to address them;
• identify the public services provided in Gaeltacht Language Planning Areas (“LPAs”) and specify strategies to ensure that Irish is the working language of those offices located in LPAs and that these services are provided through the medium of Irish;
• identify the current level of Irish language competence in the public sector; and
• make recommendations on strategies for recruiting individuals who are competent in Irish.

The preparation of the National Plan is in line with achieving the overarching objective of the Act, which is that 20% of recruits to the public sector will be competent in Irish by 31 December 2030. Furthermore, a specific commitment is given in the government's Civil Service Renewal 2030 strategy to implement this plan.

A wide range of stakeholders, at a senior level, are represented through the organisations and members included in this statutory committee – including the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, and the Public Appointments Service. Representation on the Committee was carefully selected to ensure maximum impact and buy-in across the public sector, particularly in the context of central recruitment for Government Department's and offices. The work of the Committee will be an important element in supporting all Departments and public bodies in meeting their statutory obligations and ensuring the full and successful implementation of the Act.

Of course another key area in achieving the statutory targets included in the Act is and will be the development of current Irish language competence in the public sector and supporting employees in using the language in the workplace. In this context, existing civil servants are being encouraged to pursue Irish language training courses via OneLearning - the Learning and Development Centre for the civil service – which falls under the auspices of the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform. These courses are provided under contract by Gaelchultúr with testing of standards achieved by participants being undertaken by Maynooth University using the Teastas Eorpach na Gaeilge (“TEG”) framework. This certification is of particular importance, with the Common European Framework for Languages, on which TEG is based, being mentioned specifically in the Act. TEG qualifications will therefore be of particular value in the coming years for both learners and employers alike, as individuals with particular language skills will be sought for a wide variety of diverse roles across the public service.

With regard to other educational initiatives, the Advanced Irish Language Skills Initiative, funded by my Department, is also intended to ensure the availability of qualified persons with Irish language skills to meet recruitment needs in Ireland and the EU. It currently supports a range of specialised third level Irish language courses in areas such as translation, interpreting and law, with eight courses now available in five different institutions. Aside from this initiative, a broad range of courses is available in Irish in our higher education institutions, with the Department understanding that student returns statistics show 106 courses available in higher education in Irish with 2,510 enrolments in the past academic year.

Given the statutory targets under the Act, it is now intended to review and expand the functions of the Advanced Irish Language Skills Initiative to focus more on third level education and recruitment needs in Ireland as a result of the Act and the Department is working towards initiating this review before the end of the year.

Through the additional allocation of €0.5m secured by my Department under Budget 2024, a number of further initiatives to support efforts to embed the provisions of the Act across the public service are also being explored and progressed, namely:

• establishing an Irish language network to support Irish language speakers and learners, who are already working in the public service, to use the language in their work;
• establishing an Apprenticeship Scheme, in collaboration with DFHERIS. My Department has committed to the development of a Speisialtóir Gaeilge (Irish Language Specialist) apprenticeship programme at Executive Officer level in the Action Plan for Apprenticeship, 2021 to 2025. This programme is due to be rolled out in Q3 of 2025;
• developing a wide range of other support measures for public bodies in relation to the implementation of the Act; and
• fostering awareness of the Act in general among the public and public bodies, starting with a major awareness campaign in the coming months regarding the significant employment opportunities that exist and will exist for those with Irish in the public sector, as a result of the Act.

To conclude, there has been, and continues to be, ongoing engagement between my Department and DFHERIS regarding strategic elements of the implementation of the Official Languages (Amendment) Act 2021, particularly in relation to the development of the Apprenticeship Scheme for Speisialtóirí Gaeilge as mentioned above as well as on the intended review of the Advance Irish Language Skills Initiative. I look forward to furthering this co-operation in the coming period as we work together, on an all-of-Government basis, towards the full and successful implementation of the Official Languages Acts 2003 to 2021, and in particular towards achieving the ambitious recruitment target as noted in the Deputy's question.