Fluent should not lecture less skilled Irish speakers – Humphreys

Minister for the Gaeltacht Heather Humphreys has warned against fluent Irish speakers lecturing others who lack proficiency.

Ms Humphreys, the senior Minister in the department, acknowledged she was not fluent but said she had made efforts to improve her skills over the past two years and would continue to do so. During a Dáil debate on the state of the first national language several TDs criticised Ms Humphreys for her lack of fluency given her role.

However, the Minister, responding to the three-hour debate, said that those who lectured others put people off attempting to speak the language, which did serious damage. She praised her junior colleague, outgoing Minister of State for the Gaeltacht Joe McHugh, who has reached a level of fluency of Irish he did not have when he was appointed.

Labour TD Seán Sherlock said they should get away from the “binary, hackneyed debate” about proficiency.

“Let’s encourage people to speak the language more and if we broaden the debate we can also encourage the use of bilingualism in everyday life.”

Full remit

Sinn Féin TD Peadar Tóibín said Ms Humphreys’s new Department of Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and Gaeltacht “will not know its full remit, will not fully function nor will it have its staff for another eight weeks, just before the summer recess”. He said there was the “crazy situation” that parliamentary questions in their entirety would be prevented and Oireachtas committee meetings would not be able to comprehensively function.

“It will be September, six months after the election before TDs are fully able to deal with these pivotal areas.”

Social Democrats TD Catherine Murphy expressed her unhappiness with “this miscellaneous Department of Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht. With a lot of portfolios, it lacks focus.”

People Before Profit TD Bríd Smith said there was a big demand for Irish language education in Ballyfermot, Dublin “but people have to go to Inchicore, Clondalkin or as far away as Lucan to access Irish language services”.

Investment

Independent Catherine Connolly called for the Government to accept the call of organisations such as Foras na Gaeilge and Údarás na Gaeltachta for investment of €18 million and said it was important to keep up the pressure on the Government.

Green Party TD Catherine Martin said that if people were serious about the Official Languages Act, Irish language rights would have to be strengthened rather than reduced and weakened. She said there should be a specific section in the Taoiseach’s department that would have responsibility for putting the Act into effect in all Government departments and State agencies.

Fine Gael TD Brendan Griffin called for the status of “seed Gaeltacht” for areas making a real effort to improve the language for the first time. He also suggested there should be “twinning” between Gaeltacht areas and other towns.

The Minister of State said the Government was being criticised over funding for Irish but he said it was Fianna Fáil who imposed the cuts, with drastic reductions in funding of State agencies during the recession.