Scottish Gaelic is ‘in a perilous state’

Bill does not provide sufficient support and protection to Gaelic and Scots

Scottish Gaelic is in a ‘perilous state’ according to a new report released today by the Scottish Parliament’s Education, Children and Young People Committee.

The Committee’s report details reservations about the practical impact of the Scottish Languages Bill, which aims to support Scotland’s indigenous languages. The Committee recommends the Bill should proceed to the next stage of scrutiny, but says that more needs to be done to effectively support Gaelic and Scots.

The Committee understood the symbolic importance for stakeholders of designating Gaelic and Scots as official languages in legislation, and the general aims of the Bill were widely supported.

However, witnesses expressed significant concerns about the lack of tangible support for communities using these languages and dialects, concerns the Committee shares. In the report it warns that without additional support, the Bill’s aim to strengthen the support for and promotion of the languages will not be achieved.

In particular, the Committee describes Gaelic as being in a ‘perilous state’. During evidence sessions, most witnesses, including the Deputy First Minister, agreed that action beyond legislation was needed to solve the problems facing the language.

The Committee’s report calls on the Scottish Government to explain how it would use the powers in the Bill to improve the position of Gaelic.

Sue Webber MSP, Convener of the Education, Children and Young People Committee, said: “We have serious concerns about the future of Gaelic.

On its own, we believe the Scottish Languages Bill does not address the challenges facing the Gaelic language or provide the necessary support to either Gaelic or Scots.

“While our Committee has recommended that the Parliament backs the general principles of the Bill, the Scottish Government must do more to avoid it being purely symbolic.

“We’re also concerned by the lack of clarity around what the obligations attached to this Bill mean for public bodies and local authorities regarding Gaelic and Scots. We would expect the Scottish Government to provide clarity on this, and the other concerns in our report, as scrutiny of the Bill continues.”

The report also highlights concerns about one of the flagship proposals in the Bill, which would see areas of linguistic significance established in areas where there are high proportions of Gaelic speakers.

The Committee agreed with witnesses that the Bill does not explain:

  • what an area of linguistic significance would look like in places with smaller proportions of Gaelic speakers
  • how public bodies would work in these areas to deliver opportunities for Gaelic speakers
  • what funding would be available for local authorities to establish and maintain an area of linguistic significance

The Bill is expected to be considered by the Scottish Parliament in a Stage 1 debate in the autumn.

REPORT:

New presenters set to host Gaelic film’s biggest night of the year

BBC ALBA stars, Lana Pheutan and Hannah McKirdy, are set to host Gaelic film’s biggest night of the year: the FilmG Awards. The presenters will oversee the awards ceremony on Friday (23 February) where winners will be crowned for the 16th annual iteration of the Gaelic short-film competition.

With the awards historically held at the Old Fruitmarket in Glasgow and hosted by BBC ALBA stalwarts Fiona MacKenzie and Niall Iain MacDonald, the event this year takes place at the SEC with Lana and Hannah welcoming the audience of almost 500 filmmakers, industry professionals and FilmG devotees.

Lana and Hannah themselves participated in FilmG over the years, both picking up awards that helped propel them into their media careers.

Hannah picked up a Best Performance trophy in 2017 for Cheating our Language while Lana has won numerous awards, including winning two in 2017 (Best Comedy and People’s Choice Award), three in 2018 (Best Performance, Best Student Film and People’s Choice Award) and the prestigious Best Film award in 2019 for her film Sòlas.

Since then, Lana and Hannah have worked together regularly, as actors, podcasters and most recently as co-creators and stars of the BBC ALBA mockumentary Glan Fhèin, and as co-hosts of the successful BBC Radio nan Gàidheal podcast Fad Botal Fìon.

New FilmG co-host, Lana Pheutan, said: “This is the first year that myself and Hannah are presenting the FilmG Awards and I’m really excited, and a bit nervous, for what has historically been a fantastic night.

“We’ve both attended many FilmG ceremonies over the years and it’s always a great chance for young Gaelic speakers to meet, mingle, and celebrate the language. It’s up to us to keep the crowd entertained whilst guiding the FilmG nominees through a seamless night of celebrating Gaelic short films.”

New FilmG co-host, Hannah McKirdy, said: “FilmG is a fantastic vehicle for developing Gaelic talent, and Lana and I both benefited from the experience we gained through creating films, writing scripts, and later winning awards.

“This year, over 50 films have been shortlisted across the categories, which demonstrates the wealth of Gaelic Filmmaking talent in Scotland and beyond. We know exactly how excited and nervous the nominees will be – we’ve been in their shoes – so Lana and I will be there on the night to ensure everyone has a good time.”

The FilmG Awards will take place on the evening of Friday 23 February in the Lomond Auditorium of the SEC in Glasgow.

The awards will be live-streamed to BBC ALBA’s YouTube and FilmG’s Facebook, with a highlights programme to be broadcast two days later on BBC ALBA (8pm on Sunday 25 February): https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001wsfr.

Holyrood ‘shows respect’ for Gaelic with five year plan

The Scottish Parliament has renewed its commitment to Gaelic with the publication of its new Gaelic Language plan. The plan, published yesterday,  sets out how the Scottish Parliament will promote and support the language over the next five years. Continue reading Holyrood ‘shows respect’ for Gaelic with five year plan