Cork County Council is only local authority without language policy for Gaeltacht housing
Cork County Council is currently the only local authority in the country which to date has not adopted such a policy in its planning conditions, despite the fact that an act was passed 25 years ago which allows councils with Gaeltacht areas to do this.
The issue was raised at a meeting in County Hall by Fianna Fáil councillor Gobnait Moynihan, a fluent Irish speaker who lives in the Mhuscraí Gaeltacht.
That area encompasses a number of small villages in the Mid-Cork region such as Cùil Aodha, Baile Mhuirne, Cill na Martra, Réidh na nDoirì and Béal Àtha nGhaothaidh.
The other Gaeltacht area in the county is Oileàn Cléire off the West Cork coast.
Ms Moynihan said the council is planning to build some houses in Baile Mhuirne and it should reserve a percentage of these for those who speak Irish on a daily basis.
Ms Moynihan said the Planning and Development Act 2000 gave councils the green light to place language conditions on housing developments in Gaeltacht areas.
'All other councils with a Gaeltacht area are tackling this issue, except for Cork County Council. Take Donegal County Council, for example, where any housing development must have a minimum of 85% of the units allocated to Irish speakers,' she said.
A Gaeltacht only exists because a percentage of people in the particular area speak Irish daily. The Gaeltacht status could be lost quickly if the level of daily Irish language speakers falls.
"We know from the last census that there was a 2.4% drop of daily Irish speakers in the (Mhuscraí Gaeltacht) location already. For this reason the language conditions on such a housing development is paramount in preserving the Gaeltacht and for the growth of the language. At least other councils are tackling the issue, but to date Cork County Council is not,' Ms Moynihan said.
Fianna Fáil councillor Gearóid Murphy said it was unfortunate that Cork County Council appeared to be the only local authority which hadn't adopted the terms of the 2000 Act, while fluent Irish speaker Fianna Fáil councillor Gillian Coughlan also voiced her support.
Mid-Cork based Fine Gael councillor Michael Creed also said there has to be a commitment from the council to provide houses for Irish speakers in Gaeltacht areas.
Council chief executive Moira Murrell said that a review is to take place shortly of the current County Development Plan and officials will give consideration to what the councillors had asked for when this happens.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Extra.ie
23 minutes ago
- Extra.ie
‘Worrying time for Irish in US' as Trump makes good on illegals promise
A leading immigration activist in New York said yesterday that 'this is a worrying time for the Irish in America'. Ciaran Staunton, head of the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform, said the recent deportation of thousands of undocumented people from the US is not just confined to immigrants from Central and South America. Mr Staunton is campaigning to legalise the status of the undocumented Irish in the US. Mr Staunton is campaigning to legalise the status of the undocumented Irish in the US. Pic: Rolling News He said: 'It's a worrying time because Donald Trump told his voters he would remove all undocumented persons or illegal immigrants prior to his election last November, and now he is sending out a message that he's following up on that promise. 'This has become a big media story with criminal aliens being lined up before the cameras to show that the president is honouring his word. Some of those detained were actually arrested in courthouses while facing prosecutions for crime.' The comments come after it emerged 56 undocumented Irish people have been arrested and 43 of them have been deported. The arrests were in New York, Boston and New Jersey and are believed to be focused on Irish visitors to America who overstayed their 90-day visa waiver. Mr Staunton, who emigrated to New York from Westport, County Mayo, in the early 1980s, said Mr Trump has to play to his Republican Party base, as the midterm elections to the US House of Representatives will take place in November next year. Pic: File Mr Staunton, who emigrated to New York from Westport, County Mayo, in the early 1980s, said Mr Trump has to play to his Republican Party base, as the midterm elections to the US House of Representatives will take place in November next year. If the Republicans lose control of the House and the Senate in the elections, Trump will struggle to pass legislation for the remaining two years of his second presidential term. Mr Staunton said: 'Even though Trump is doing what he promised, there are signs emerging of a backlash from his hardcore support group. In red States such as Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, Republican farmers are becoming increasingly unhappy. If the Republicans lose control of the House and the Senate in the elections, Trump will struggle to pass legislation for the remaining two years of his second presidential term. Pic:'Where once they had a steady supply of Hispanic labour to pick fruit, or abattoirs had people to cut meat or do jobs that entailed getting your hands dirty, that source of personnel has started to dry up, and these are jobs the average American will not do.' Somewhere between 20,000 and 30,000 undocumented Irish people are estimated to be living in the US. Most of them moved there in the 1980s when unemployment in Ireland reached a high of 17% in 1986. The US government clamped down on casual immigration following the 9/11 attacks in 2001, and anyone who overstays a 90-day visa waiver faces severe consequences. The situation has been made all the more complicated for the Irish who emigrated in the 1980s and do not have legal status. Now, 40 years or so later, they cannot return to Ireland even for the funeral of a parent, as to do so will result in an automatic ban on re-entering the States.
RTÉ News
an hour ago
- RTÉ News
Thailand and Cambodia truce talks due as strikes continue
Thailand and Cambodia's leaders are due to meet for peace talks, as a festering territorial dispute along their shared frontier dragged into a fifth day of open combat. At least 35 people have been killed and more than 200,000 displaced since Thursday as the countries fight over a smattering of contested ancient temples. In an effort initiated by US President Donald Trump, Thailand's acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai and Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet will meet at 8am Irish time in Kuala Lumpur. China is also expected to send a delegation. Ahead of the talks, Thailand and Cambodia traded fresh fire and accusations. "We do not believe Cambodia is acting in good faith, based on their actions in addressing the issue," Mr Phumtham told reporters as he departed Bangkok airport. "They need to demonstrate genuine intent, and we will assess that during the meeting." Cambodia's defence ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata said today was "the fifth day that Thailand has invaded Cambodia's territory with heavy weapons and with the deployment of a lot of troops". In Thailand's Surin city, 30km from the border and a hub for evacuees fleeing the fighting, 58-year-old Lamduan Chuenjit shared her leader's scepticism. "I hope the negotiation goes well today and ends with a ceasefire," the cleaner said while sweeping a shopfront. "But I do wonder how trustworthy Cambodia is." On the eve of the talks, Thailand's military said Cambodian snipers were camping in one of the contested temples, and accused Cambodia of surging troops along the border and hammering Thai territory with rockets. It said fighting was ongoing at seven areas along the rural border region, marked by a ridge of hills surrounded by wild jungle and agricultural land where locals farm rubber and rice. "The situation remains highly tense, and it is anticipated that Cambodia may be preparing for a major military operation prior to entering negotiations," the Thai military statement read. On Saturday, President Trump said he made a late-night call to both leaders, who agreed to "quickly work out" a truce. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said the summit, which will be mediated by Malaysian leader Anwar Ibrahim, was also organised "with the participation of China", a key trade and political ally. "The purpose of this meeting is to achieve an immediate ceasefire, which was initiated by President Donald Trump and agreed to by both prime ministers of Cambodia and Thailand," Mr Hun Manet said. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that US officials "are on the ground in Malaysia to assist these peace efforts", while Mr Anwar told domestic media he would focus on securing an "immediate ceasefire". Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn marks his 73rd birthday today, but a notice in the country's Royal Gazette said his public celebrations scheduled for Bangkok's Grand Palace have been cancelled amid the strife. Mr Trump has threatened both countries with eye-watering levies in his global tariff blitz unless they agree to independent trade deals, saying he would "look forward" to signing them once "Peace is at hand". Both sides have agreed to a truce in principle, while accusing the other of undermining peace efforts and trading allegations about the use of cluster bombs and targeting of hospitals. Thailand says eight of its soldiers and 14 civilians have been killed, while Cambodia has confirmed eight civilian and five military deaths. The Thai military said it has returned the bodies of 12 Cambodian soldiers killed in combat. More than 138,000 people have fled Thailand's border regions, while around 80,000 have been driven from their homes in Cambodia. With the skirmish enflaming nationalist sentiments, Thailand warned its citizens to "refrain from any kind of violence, whether in speech or action" against Cambodian migrants living in the country.
Irish Independent
2 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Wicklow Gaelscoil faces loss of teacher because it is ‘only one pupil short of the threshold'
Sinn Féin TD for Wicklow, John Brady, has called on the government to intervene to reduce the pupil-teacher ratio in Gaelscoileanna and to prevent the loss of a teacher from Gaelscoil Uí Chéadaigh, in Bray, this September. 'Following the crash in 2011, the government made the damaging decision to increase the pupil-teacher ratio in Gaelscoileanna, under the guise of aligning them with English-medium schools,' Deputy Brady said. 'This policy shift has had long-term consequences, and now we see those consequences play out locally in Gaelscoil Uí Chéadaigh, which is being forced to lose a teacher because they are only one pupil short of the threshold. It is disgraceful and deeply unfair,' he said. Deputy Brady said he has repeatedly raised the issue with the Education Minister Helen McEntee, but the Department has refused to consider exceptional circumstances, despite the significant impact this decision will now have on the school community, something he described as 'completely unacceptable'. 'I have been in contact with the Minister for Education, but despite the very clear case put forward by the school and community, there is a total unwillingness to show any flexibility. The result is that the children are being punished, staff are being stretched, and the quality of the education is being compromised', he said. The Wicklow TD also highlighted the 'hypocrisy at the heart of government claims' to support the Irish language and expand opportunities for Irish-medium education, while 'failing to back that rhetoric with real investment or meaningful policy change'. 'The Programme for Government set a target of 19:1 pupil teacher ratio for primary schools. But the reality in classrooms, particularly in many Gaelscoileanna, is worlds apart. Schools are overcrowded, under-resourced and under constant pressure. The decision to strip Gaelscoil Uí Chéadaigh of a teacher shows just how little regard this Government has for Irish-medium schools and for the children who attend them,' he said. He also criticised what he described as 'the ongoing failure of successive Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments' to tackle staffing issues in Gaelcholaistí, pointing to Coláiste Ráithín, in Bray, as an example of a school facing persistent difficulties. 'Year after year, Coláiste Ráithín is left scrambling to fill teaching posts due to staff shortages beyond their control. It is a repeated cycle that the Government refuses to fix. They 'talk the talk' regarding the Irish language, but when it comes to real support for the schools delivering Irish-language education, they vanish. It is a fantastic school, and they should not have this constant worry,' he said. He said that unless the Government reinstates the previous, lower pupil-teacher ratio for Gaelscoileanna and immediately intervenes to prevent the loss of staff at Gaelscoil Uí Chéadaigh, they will continue to fail children, parents and communities who recognise the value of Irish-medium education. 'If the government is serious about investing in children's education, about supporting the Irish language, and about giving real choice to families as to where they send their children to school, they must act now,' he concluded.
