Official status for Irish may prove difficult

MAKING Irish an official EU language could prove more difficult than the Government hoped after the idea was discussed in Brussels yesterday.

Several member states are afraid their minority language speakers will pressure them to seek similar status for their languages.

The Spanish especially have been under major pressure from their eight million Catalan speakers in Catalonia, Valencia and the Balearic islands.

They point out it’s the seventh most populous language in the EU with more speaking it than speak Danish or Finnish, which are both official EU languages.

The Catalan regional government has offered to pay the cost of translations in the EU. They have been joined by three other Spanish groups, the Basques, Galicians and Valencians who also want their languages officially recognised.

Up to now the Spanish government has refused to allow the languages to be spoken in their national parliament and refuse to offer interpretation.

France too has been fearful that any concessions could lead to their Basques, Bretons and others regional language speaking populations looking for official recognition. Many of the 10 new members have similar sensitivities, especially Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia with their very large Russian minorities.

A Government spokesman said they were cautiously optimistic after a discussion of the matter between ambassadors to the EU in Brussels yesterday. “The other member states will look at our proposal and consider it. It was well received and now we must wait for a response.”

Making Irish the union’s 21st official language needs the unanimous approval of all member states. The issue will be discussed by foreign ministers at their next meeting on December 13 when the Spanish will make a proposal about their languages.

Foreign Minister Dermot Ahern in a statement issued yesterday said the Government is not looking for full translation services for Irish. They will be happy to have all decisions agreed jointly by the council representing the member states and the European Parliament.

It would also mean that MEPs speaking in the parliament would be able to do so in Irish. While a number of the 13 MEPs speak Irish, just Seán Ó Neachtain from Connemara is a native speaker. Ministers may also be able to use the language at some meetings.

There are an estimated 250,000 people fluent in the language with about 40,000 using it in their daily lives.

While the details have to be agreed, it is expected that the service would require 110 full-time translators and interpreters at an annual cost of about e10m.

The Government turned down the opportunity to have Irish as a full official language when the country joined the union in 1973 and opted instead to have it used as a treaty language similar to Luxembourgish. As a result all treaties and the new constitution are available in Irish.