Cabinet Committees
Dail Éireann — 2026-02-10
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Ryan O'Meara (FF), Tipperary North

Is mór an trua é nach bhfuil níos mó daoine líofa as Gaeilge sa tír seo, go háirithe i dTiobraid Árann. It is well recognised that immersion in the language is the best way to attain fluency. That is why last summer I asked the Minister for education to look at introducing a mandatory Gaeltacht course for all students studying Gaeilge at leaving certificate level. Another important version of immersion in a language is Irish-medium education but that is not possible at second level in Tipperary because we do not have a Gaelcholáiste. In 2024 and 2025 statistics showed that 23% of parents would send their children to a Gaelcholáiste if one was available locally. At primary level in Tipperary, 4.6% of students are in a Gaelscoil. This rises to 5.2% in south Tipperary but the national average is 6.8%, so Tipperary is well below that.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-02-10/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:36+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-10