Irish Language Committee to discuss usage of Irish in the Houses of the Oireachtas

Committee Chair Catherine Connolly: “Tomorrow the Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Gaeltacht, the Irish Language and the Islands will discuss the provisions of services in both official languages of the State in the Houses of the Oireachtas and what is being done to create a fully bilingual service in the national parliament.

It is important that the Houses of the Oireachtas, the national parliament, is seen as an exemplar for the public service, in the provision of a full, effective and co-equal service through the two official languages. We would like to see a situation where Members of the Houses, staff and the public are facilitated in every way in having a realistic choice, when interacting with the Service, in relation to which of the two official languages they choose to engage in.

The Committee is also interested in exploring with the Houses of the Oireachtas Service issues such as the Oireachtas website, the recording of the debates in the Houses, the number and spread of staff with proficiency in Irish and the level of this proficiency, and the services the Service provides to all its customers.”

This meeting will take place at 5pm, tomorrow, Tuesday, 23 January 2018 in Committee Room 4, Leinster House. Committee proceedings can be viewed live here.

Committee proceedings can also be viewed on the move, through the Houses of the Oireachtas Smartphone App, available for Apple and Android devices.