Coimsiun na Gaeltachta will hold its first meeting in Ros Muc, Co Galway, today. The eight-person commission was established in April by the Minister of State for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and Islands, Mr Eamon O Cuiv, to make proposals to the Government on how to strengthen the use of Irish as an everyday medium in the Gaeltacht. Mr O Cuiv and the commission's chairman, Mr Peadar Mac an Iomaire, will make inaugural statements.
The commission has been given a wide brief to examine and analyse the use of Irish in the Gaeltacht and to find ways to encourage its use. It is expected to present its findings in a written report in a year's time. The recommendations, however, will not be legally binding on the Government.
The terms of reference include establishing how much Irish is being spoken in Gaeltacht regions by using the last census figures and statistics from Sceim Labhairt na Gaeilge, a scheme which offers grants to Gaeltacht families to raise their children through Irish.
In addition, the commission will analyse the effectiveness of policies and schemes run by State, semi-State, private and public bodies and their impact on Irish. These bodies will include the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and Islands, Udaras na Gaeltachta, Raidio na Gaeltachta, TG4 and educational institutions.
More controversially, the commission will be expected to make recommendations regarding Gaeltacht boundaries. Concern has been expressed by Irish-language groups and activists that the current boundaries do not reflect the true use of Irish within Gaeltacht regions. The boundaries of the Gaeltacht were established in 1956 and have remained substantially unchanged.
There are Gaeltacht regions in seven counties: Cork, Kerry, Waterford, Meath, Galway, Mayo and Donegal.
Another area of potential difficulty is the Planning and Development Bill (1999). The commission will examine how to give force to those provisions in the Bill which pertain to the protection of the language and culture of the Gaeltacht. However, the current provisions are regarded as inadequate by the co-ordinating body for voluntary Irish-language groups, Comhdhail Naisiunta na Gaeilge, whose director, Mr Peadar O Flatharta, is a commission member.
Comhdhail has argued for a legal requirement on developers to include a language impact statement in their planning applications. The Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, is currently considering whether to include such a provision in the Bill. If it is not included, the work of the commission in this area may well be redundant.
The commission members include the director of spoken Irish at NUIG, Mr Peadar Mac an Iomaire (chairman), and the chairman of Udaras na Gaeltachta, Mr Tadhg O hEalaithe.