National Policy for Housing Planning in the Gaeltacht
The latest available census figures, Census 2016, show that spoken Irish is being steadily eroded in in the Gaeltacht:
Census 2016 reported that 66.3% of the people living in a Limistéar Gaeltachta that year had spoken Irish. Of the people in the limistéir Ghaeltachta in 2016, 20,586 of them were daily speakers of the language. This amounts to an 11.2% fall in the number of daily speakers that were in the Gaeltacht in Census 2011 (23,175). That number fell again to 20,261 in Census 2022.
Planning and development matters have a significant role to play on the viability of Irish as the community language in the Gaeltacht. Local people have huge difficulty getting planning permission to build their own houses in the Gaeltacht. The price of houses for sale are being increased continuously, often due to the high demand for them from communities outside of the Gaeltacht – which means that the local community don’t have the resources to buy the houses that are available for sale. Without a national policy for housing in the Gaeltacht, without a limit on developments in the Gaeltacht that don’t have language conditions imposed on them, without strong legislative provisions, the erosion of the Irish language in the Gaeltacht will continue on a systemic level.
Housing planning in the Gaeltacht should be focused entirely on sustaining and strengthening the Gaeltacht community.
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What are the benefits of a National Policy for Housing Planning in the Gaeltacht?
Certainty for the Gaeltacht community
- Ensure that the same approach is used in all Gaeltacht counties
Certainty for Local Authorities
- A common policy for every county in which a Gaeltacht area is located
- Formal recognition of the needs of the Gaeltacht in housing planning policy
- A policy that will support the language plans in each Gaeltacht area
Certainty for Developers
- Accurate information for developers on Gaeltacht planning policy
- Save developers time & money by not initiating planning developments that are not in line with national policy - compared to the current ad hoc system which often ends up before An Bord Pleanála or in the courts
Opportunity to develop the Gaeltacht and to halt ongoing depopulation:
- The number of Gaeltacht people living in their own community will be increased
- Irish speakers will be given the opportunity to move to live in the Gaeltacht
- Contribute to the local economy and the development of the Gaeltacht economy
