Identity and Language (Northern Ireland) Bill [Lords] — 12 Oct 2022 at 16:43

“respect the freedom of all persons in Northern Ireland to choose, affirm, maintain and develop their national and cultural identity and to celebrate and express that identity in a manner which takes into account the sensitivities of those with different national or cultural identities and respects the rule of law.”

“An essential aspect of the reconciliation process is the promotion of a culture of tolerance at every level of society”.

“The Secretary of State may do anything that a Northern Ireland Minister or Northern Ireland department could do in the exercise of an identity and language function”-

“remedy its failure and avoid future failures”.

“might have better regard to published facilitation guidance.”

“I believe that the people of Northern Ireland have a rich cultural identity, a mixture of native Irish and of the many peoples who made Ireland their home. This rich ancestry influenced our surnames, our place names and our everyday language. Our vernacular of hiberno English reflects this mixed identity. We are native…speakers whose English is littered with beautiful Scots and Gaelic words. The syntax of our speech reflects that of Gaelic. As a people, we are culturally rich, yet instead of embracing that wonderful cultural mix, we separate it into narrow divisive boxes and deny ourselves.”

“no Person or Persons that use the Welsh Speech or Language, shall… enjoy any manner Office or Fees”

“the English text shall prevail”.

Debate in Parliament |