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Four Parties & Over 70 Candidates Support Commitments for Irish Language in the North

Assembly Parties Supporting #GaelVóta 2016Conradh na Gaeilge informs public about election candidates’ stance on Irish language through #GaelVóta - candidates & parties can still pledge support

Information on every political party and each election candidate officially supporting the three main Irish-language commitments has been published on Conradh na Gaeilge’s website at www.cnag.ie/gaelvota as part of the #GaelVóta campaign, but candidates and parties still have time to pledge their support for the commitments before the #AE16 election in the north (5 May 2016). Sinn Féin, SDLP, People Before Profit and Cross-Community Labour Alternative officially pledged their support for the commitments as entire parties.

Cóilín Ó Cearbhaill, Uachtarán of Conradh na Gaeilge says:

“Conradh na Gaeilge is asking voters – those that are fluent Irish speakers, those that are learning Irish, or indeed those that support the language in any way – to put these commitments to all the candidates standing for election in their own constituency.”

Ciarán Mac Giolla Bhéin, Advocacy Manager, Conradh na Gaeilge says:

“Each individual candidate that officially supports the commitments has also been referenced in the #GaelVóta campaign, and any party or candidate can contact Conradh na Gaeilge at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if they wish to pledge their support for the commitments, and the relevant changes will be made at www.cnag.ie/gaelvota.”

#GaelVóta is based on three main Irish-language commitments – stemming from an investment plan and representative measures agreed by over 80 Irish-language and Gaeltacht community groups – and the commitments are as follows:

  1. An additional investment of £2.6 million in an Irish-language plan to expand the use of Irish and to create new jobs
  2. A Minister for Communities that is supportive of the Irish language and able to promote the wishes of Irish speakers
  3. A Minister for Education who supports Irish in the education system and who ensures the continued development of the Irish-medium education sector

Conradh na Gaeilge worked with local community groups throughout the north to organise action forums across the north of Ireland as part of the #GaelVóta campaign, and all candidates were contacted on at least two occasions regarding the Irish-language and Gaeltacht commitments, as per the contact details that were publicly available. The responses of candidates and parties are available at www.cnag.ie/gaelvota.

 

 

Conradh na Gaeilge

6 Harcourt Street, Dublin 2.
Phone: +353 (0) 1 475 7401, Fax: +353 (0) 1 475 7844, Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.