Oireachtas committee to seek update on State’s language compliance

An Commisinéir Teanga Rónán Ó Domhnaill is expected to tell an Oireachtas committee on Wednesday whether there has been any improvement in the circumstances that prompted his predecessor's resignation last year.

A former journalist, Mr Ó Domhnaill was appointed to the role of Coimisinéir Teanga following the resignation last February of Seán Ó Cuirreáin after 10 years service.

Language activists warned at the time that Mr Ó Cuirreáin’s resignation signalled an emerging crisis in Irish-speaking and Gaeltacht communities.

Mr Ó Cuirreáin’s resignation came amid claims the language was being driven to the margins of Irish sociey in a process accelerated by the inaction of Government and the public sector.

The Coimisinéir Teanga’s office is charged with monitoring compliance with language rights legislation by public bodies and investigating complaints from the public about alleged breaches of the legislation.

Chairman of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions Pádraig Mac Lochlainn said: "This is a timely opportunity for our Committee to explore the work of Mr Ó Domhnaill's office. The Committee has taken a longstanding interest in the work of An Coimisinéir Teanga in upholding Irish speakers' rights."

“At tomorrow’s meeting, we will have an opportunity to consider the role and remit of his Office, as well as particular trends in the caseload.”

“When presenting his Annual Report to the Committee in December 2013, Mr Ó Domhnaill’s predecessor announced that he was tendering his resignation. The Committee intends to engage with Mr Ó Domhnaill on whether the circumstances that prompted Seán Ó Cuirreáin’s resignation have improved in 2014.”

Mr Ó Domhnaill’s address is one of a series of meetings the Committee is having with the State’s various Ombudsman Offices.

The Government announced a reversal last April of a controversial decision to amalgamate the Coimisinéir’s role with the larger Office of the Ombudsman.

The proposed merger, announced in December 2011 as part of the Government’s public sector reform programme, was heavily criticised by language activists as a retrograde step.

The decision to reverse the planned merger was welcomed by the then newly-appointed Coimisinéir Rónán Ó Domhnaill as “a sensible and practical decision”.

Public proceedings can be viewed online from 4pm at the following address: http://www.oireachtas.ie/parliament/watchlisten/live-flashplayer/committeeroom4/