Mr Patsy McGlone (Mid Ulster): To ask the Minister of Health (i) to detail why his Department is the only Executive Department that has not appointed an official to the cross-departmental working group convened by the Minister for Communities to consult on the actions drafted by the Irish Language Strategy Co-Design Group; and (ii) , given that the strategy will contain actions to be taken forward by his Department, whether he will reconsider this decision.
Minister of Health: The absence of strategies and structures has not prevented the development of either language or culture in recent years in Northern Ireland. In the context of the severe financial challenges facing the Department of Health, any additional funding for the promotion of languages would inevitably mean that less is available for the delivery of core Health & Social Care services.
In addition, fewer than 1 percent of the proposed actions in the draft Action Plans fall specifically for the Department of Health to take forward. It is therefore not the best use of the scarce resources available for the Department of Health to make a nomination to the Ulster-Scots Language, Heritage & Culture Strategy & Irish Language Strategy Cross Departmental Working Group (CDWG). However, Department of Health officials receive copies of the papers for the CDWG meetings with representation kept under review.
ENDS
Your MLA 