EU: Irish will become the 21st official and working language of the European Union on January 1st, 2007, following a unanimous decision yesterday by EU foreign ministers meeting in Luxembourg. The decision follows a year-long campaign by the Government to enhance the status of Irish, which has been a treaty language of the EU since Ireland joined in 1973.
Irish will have the same status as the EU's other official and working languages but the Government has requested a slimmed-down regime which will not require all documents to be translated into Irish.
From 2007, all primary legislation approved by the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament will be translated into Irish and ministers and MEPs will be able to use Irish on request during council meetings and European Parliament plenary sessions.
Irish officials said the decision would create between 20 and 30 jobs for Irish translators and interpreters in the European institutions. The European Commission estimates that making Irish an official language will cost the EU €3.5 million a year, compared to an average of €46 million for each of the other 20 official languages.
The Taoiseach welcomed the decision, which he described as a very important step forward for the Irish language.
"It ensures that the status accorded to Irish in the Union reflects its domestic status. It is further evidence of the Government's determination to ensure that every opportunity is used to promote and facilitate the use of Irish, including in our activities as a member of the EU," he said.
In a separate move, the foreign ministers agreed to offer semi-official status to minority languages which have a constitutional status within a member-state and to the national language of any member-state. This will open the way for an enhanced status for such languages as Catalan and Basque and for Luxembourgish. Member-states requesting enhanced status for such languages will, however, have to pay the cost of translation and interpretation themselves.
Yesterday's decision follows months of difficult negotiations with Ireland's EU partners, the outcome of which remained uncertain until yesterday morning. The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dermot Ahern, praised Ireland's Permanent Representative to the EU, Anne Anderson, who conducted most of the negotiations, as "absolutely magnificent".
The European Parliament's only native Irish speaker, Fianna Fáil MEP Seán Ó Neachtain, expressed delight at the decision, which he claimed would create hundreds of new jobs.
"Irish being made an official language of the EU will create approximately 500 employment opportunities for Irish graduates in translating and interpreting at no cost to the Irish exchequer. Irish qualification will be a passport to EU employment, as most EU posts require applicants to be fluent in two European languages and Irish now qualifies."
Sinn Féin MEP Bairbre De Brún praised the role of Irish language campaigners in achieving the change of status for Irish in the EU, which she said would have an important impact on all Irish speakers.