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INCREASED FUNDING TO Irish language groups announced in the Budget yesterday will go towards creating more jobs in Gaeltacht areas between now and 2020.
There will be an increase of €2.5 million for groups advocating for Irish language and Gaeltacht affairs, the language planning process, jobs created by Údarás na Gaeltachta, and various training programmes as Gaeilge.
In total, €62.595 million has been allocated for next year for the Irish language, the Gaeltacht and the islands. That figure breaks down as follows:
Announcing the additional funding yesterday, Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe said in his Budget speech that “our national language is a vital part our country”.
Speaking to TheJournal.ie, CEO of Údarás na Gaeltachta Micheál Ó hÉanaigh said that his organisation was happy that the funding was going “in the right direction”.
Along with the organisations overall budget of €7 million, Ó hÉanaigh added that there might be top-ups in funding during the year – last year there was an extra €1.5 million delivered, which gave them “a good amount of flexibility”.
But some opposition politicians have said that it’s not good enough. The Social Democrats leader Roisín Shortall compared the amount being spent on the Taoiseach’s new Strategic Communications Unit (€5 million) to the increase in funding for groups geared towards promoting the Irish language (€2.5 million).
Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty told the Dáil that his party would have recommended €5 million for Údarás na Gaeltachta and €4 million for language planning process.
He said that the government has to be “honest about the language” and “invest appropriately in it” so it will be here in the coming years.
But Ó hÉanaigh isn’t put off by those figure comparisons:
We’re like every other group: we want more, but we work with what we’ve got.
He said that the additional funds would be used to raise the number of people in full-time employment in Gaeltacht areas from 7,400 to 8,000 between now and 2020.
He added that this would be done through research into natural resources, tourism development and multinational companies located in Gaeltachtaí.
Ó hÉanaigh did say that the Taoiseach’s interest and proficiency in the Irish language is “without doubt” contributing to the increase in Irish language funding.
“It’s something positive that we have a Taoiseach who is sympathetic to the Irish language, we’d welcome that enormously.”
Among the initiatives devised by the government to promote the Irish language and Gaeltacht areas is the €48.6 million ‘Programme C’, which will:
Minister of State for the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht and the Islands Joe McHugh said that “support for the Irish language and the sustainable development of our island communities will remain key priorities for me in 2018″.
There is a growing love for our language and our culture; it is what sets us apart.
A second programme worth €14.028 million aims to develop Irish and Ulster Scots in the context of the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement:
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The next general election will be tough too Joan…
They are not helping people get back to work.the only reason the number signing on is lower is because of emigration.i had to leave the country to find work leaving my wife and kids behind.thats one of the hardest things I have ever done or will do.those idiots in the dail sacrifice nothing.we the people take all the hits.
Too true.
“She said the level of social welfare abuse “is relatively low” but that in a budget of €20 billion, even 3 per cent of people abusing it amounts to millions of euro.”
Last week World Bank figures on remittances showed tha Nigerians in Ireland sent back 490 million euros to Nigeria – that’s 26,000 euros for each Nigerian man, woman and child in the State.
However, children are ineligible to work, so the figure is close to 40,000 euros.
But wait, Nigerians also have the highest rate of unemployment in the country than any other group – 45% (Lithuanians are second at 25%) – so the actual figure is more than 55,000 euros sent to Nigeria each year.
Most Nigerians are working in unskilled, low-paid jobs.
Monies sent from Ireland by foreign migrants are three times higher than the amount of money being sent home to Ireland by the Irish abroad.
World Bank statistics show that Irish people living in other countries sent more than $750 million (€560 million) back home in 2011, but foreign workers here sent remittances of $2.4 billion (€1.8 billion) home in the same year.
Wake up, Joan.
Quickly.
I think we’d all have a different outlook to these budgets if those writing them up took a significant pay cut and led by example. I’m talking knocking 80k a year off their wage slips.
Poor Joan, she hasn’t got a clue who is even writing the budget coz it sure isn’t noonan. Wonder if the furer over in Germany is telling her to give all these “exclusive” interviews with the journal?
Why oh why are you giving her airtime. Her village is missing her…..
Labour must finally be looking at the polls. Local elections coming up so they send out Joan the Moan to spew out her usual drivel.
Hell, if you throw enough mud at the wall some of it will stick, or as we’ve witnessed over the past couple of days, if Joan starts commenting on everything, then maybe we’ll actually believe some of this tripe.
At the last General Election I was foolish enough to believe your ‘bile’ & actually gave Joan my first preference vote, a mistake I can gladly say will never happen again. As soon as Labour got into bed with their counterparts in Government, they turned their backs on the very people who voted them in.
In saying that you have done one good thing whilst in power & I thank you for it.
Thank you Joan for showing me the error of my ways. Roll on 2016!!!
What a lot of hot air
Things won’t be tough in her house. An overpaid ministerial salary will make sure of that.
Tough experience Joan? Possibly you should try living as those who your decisions effect for a couple of months. Tough experience my arse. Silly minister.
The rich and wealthy won’t feel the pain, you can count on that!
“Hard decisions and trying to be fair’. .. Roll on the next elections .
.
Ah Aoife my morning was going so well until about 2min ago when I read the headline and then saw the sour frown on Burton.
Let them know how you’s all feel when the next election comes around
Clueless woman.
She is my third favourite Burton.
whats she moaning about sure the lads over in the european comission look after that for them now every body knows that , all you have to do joan is pretend that you have read it when they send it to you and your miserable party … lets be serious she’s not going to feck up her chances of jumping on the Mep gravy train to brussells by disagreeing with next years round of taxing the poor.. VOTE SF
Labour no answers, no solutions, a spent force thats passed it best before date.
Exactly! Hopefully they’ll go the same way the Greens did last time round
Bullshit they have…
She and her colleagues don’t know what tough means – muppets, all of them!
Not a tough experience for you, Joan, insulated as you are from a falling income (or no income) and constantly mounting taxes, levies and “charges”. The tough experience is for the generality of the population and you needn’t try and fool us into thinking you are agonizing over any of the “tough decisions”. How dare you? Your Government have had, admittedly little room for manoevre, but have consistently made the choices which would punish and disadvantage the ordinary working population – and the ‘vulnerable’ about whom you were so vocal in the general election campaign. If you think people are going to overlook that, you have another think coming.
All benefits should be slashed by 50%
Unless you have worked to pay into it
Personally if your long term unemployed 5 yrs or more you should be on side road cleaning in parks working cleaning beach
You should not get benefit for nothing
must be local elections coming up Joan THE MOAN, sure you dont have to worry about money, but dont forget the people dont forget the punishment labour imposed on its voters LIARS
some neck
have your say