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Plenary, 29 Jan 2009

29 Jan 2009 · S3 · Plenary

Item of business

Gaelic Language Plan

Munro, John Farquhar LD Ross, Skye and Inverness West Watch on SPTV

I am very happy to be taking part in this debate on Gaelic, and I am very proud of the minister, who gave the first part of her speech in Gaelic. That is a big step forward. Many thanks, minister.

First, I would like to thank the Government for giving me an advance copy of the consultation. I welcome its publication. It is clear that the Government is going in the right direction when it comes to securing the future of the language as part of Scotland's national heritage. The Gaelic language is still very fragile and must be strengthened and become embedded. When a national plan is developed, the language must not just be tacked on as an afterthought.

As was said earlier, it is vital to acknowledge that Gaelic belongs not only to the Highlands. Half of all Gaelic speakers live in the central belt and in cities such as Edinburgh or Glasgow.

Clearly, the draft Gaelic language plan is comprehensive. When the plan is published and enacted, the most important thing will be how it is then delivered. The most important way of delivering the plan will be through the national curriculum. If Gaelic is established through the education system, it can then be sown through the rest of society. As is obvious, that is happening already.

I welcome the Scottish Government's aims to promote a growing number of Gaelic speakers in Scotland, and I would like to suggest a few ways in which that might be achieved. In Gaelic education, it will be important to put greater emphasis on the ability to speak the language. That is a basic point that would apply to the teaching of any other language. Too much emphasis can be put on grammar and writing, and not enough on the spoken word.

If we really want to see how we are doing in the teaching of Gaelic, we must remember how well we are doing with other languages, such as French. I believe that the teaching of languages at a young age is the way forward, and can greatly benefit a child's education. I would therefore like Gaelic language provision to be equal to any other language provision. For example, the modern languages in primary schools programme should be compared with its Gaelic equivalent, which still only has limited availability, even in the Highlands. I hope that the situation will improve. In order to secure the language for future generations, I would like the plan to include provisions for the expansion of tuition in secondary and further education.

The long-term future of Gaelic will be underpinned by the availability of Gaelic teachers. Although numbers of Gaelic teachers grew in the 1990s, they have remained at the same level since devolution. In order to ensure that we have more Gaelic teachers, the plan must include provision for more immersion courses that will teach Gaelic to teachers. Current arrangements rely heavily on Gaelic speakers wanting to teach. The Scottish Government is aiming to establish dedicated Gaelic schools. The success of that plan will depend on the number of Gaelic-speaking teachers in the education system.

I will listen to what is said in this afternoon's debate, but I believe that the draft plan represents a serious effort by the Scottish Government to implement a Gaelic programme for Scotland.

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Plenary, 29 Jan 2009

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