Republican News · Thursday 28 November 2002

ger over Irish language cuts

Sinn Féin spokesperson Gearóid Ó hEára has hit out at the decision by the Dublin Government to cut their funding of the North/South Irish language body Foras na Gaeilge.

Commenting on the 11% cut, the Sinn Féin spokesperson, who is one of the party's two nominees to the Language Body' said the government "is effectively cutting back on the commitments made in the Good Friday Agreement. The Irish-speaking community across the island feel that they have been let down.

"We might have expected this from the Northern Ireland Office, who have shown total disregard for Irish in the past, but Charlie McCreevy has effectively given them an excuse to cut back on their funding for the Irish language.

"This cut means a loss of almost £2m to the promotion of Irish and the effects of it could well jeopardise the significant progress achieved by Foras so far."

"Sinn Féin will be raising this matter, as a matter of urgency, with the two governments and demanding that the proper levels of funding and staffing are made available to Foras na Gaeilge to allow them to carry out the task assigned to them under the Good Friday Agreement."

Over 3,000 in Irish-medium education in North

A total of 3,229 children now go to Irish medium schools in the North - and when Martin McGuinness opens a new school in Lisnaskea in Fermanagh on 11 December for the first time there will be Irish medium schools in all Six Counties.

Naíscoil an Traonaigh is to open on a site sold to the school by local GAA club the Emmets and in his opening speech McGuinness will emphasise the excellent results achieved by pupils at Irish medium schools in exams. He is also set to open Scoil Eadan Mhór in Derry on 6 December.

Meánscoil Feirste, Belfast's Irish medium secondary school, has consistently been at the top of the table in the North for GCSE results.

In Belfast alone there are now 2,000 children in Irish medium schools and plans within the next year to open schools in the leafy suburbs of Carryduff and Lambeg as well as Omagh, Newry, Cushendall, Carrickmore and South Armagh.

Pilib Ó Rúnaí of Iontaobhas na Gaelscolaíochta says that it's now more popular, easier and more rewarding than ever to choose Irish medium education.

"From 5 pupils in 1971 to 3,229 in 2002 tells its own story," he says.

Meantime, on a nationwide scale, with almost 30,000 pupils in Irish medium education throughout the 32 counties, the North has over a tenth of all the pupils in Irish medium education in Ireland today.