Aire Airgeadais ag diúltú do rogha Gaeilge ar Uathmheaisín Bainc – Aengus Ó Snodaigh TD

Cháin urlabhraí Gaeilge, Gaeltacht agus Ealaíon Shinn Féin, Aengus Ó Snodaigh TD, gur dhiúltaigh an tAire Airgeadais Paschal Donohoe roimh moladh go mbeadh rogha Gaeilge ar fáil ar aon uathmheaisín bainc nua nó athchláraithe amach anseo.

Bhí leasú molta ag urlabhraí Airgeadais Shinn Féin, Pearse Doherty TD, ar an mBille Airgeadais (Rochtain ar Bhonneagar Airgid Thirim a Sholáthar), 2024, chun an riachtanas seo a chur ar UMBanna le linn díospóireacht ag Céim an Choiste ar an mBille an tseachtain seo caite.

Dúirt an Teachta Ó Snodaigh:

“Is mór an trua go bhfuil Fine Gael agus Fianna Fáil glan in aghaidh aon dul chun cinn maidir le cearta Gaeilgeoirí sa ghnáthshaol laethúil. Ní ghlacann siad leis go bhfuil Gaeilgeoirí san áireamh i measc tomhaltóirí na tíre, agus mar sin gur chóir go gcosnódh cearta tomhaltóirí daoine ar mian leo a gcuid gnó a dhéanamh sa teanga náisiúnta.

“Nuair a dhiúltaigh siad don leasú seo ó mo chomhghleacaí Pearse Doherty TD sa Dáil an tseachtain seo caite, níor thug siad leithscéal fiú, rud atá thar a bheith neamhghnách agus drochbhéasach.

“Bhí orm ceist parlaiminte a chur ag lorg míniú, agus is léir dom ón freagra a fuair mé inniú nár léigh an tAire Donohoe an leasú i gceart.

“Léirigh an tAire buairt go mbeadh UMBanna bainte ó ceantracha, bearna sa tseirbhís, nó costas ollmhór brúite ar soláthraithe mar thoradh ar riachtanas iad a athchlárú, cé go bhfuil sé ráite go soiléir sa leasú nach mbeadh gá le meaisín atá ann cheana féin a athrú, bheadh feidhm ag an leasú ar mheaisín nua nó athchláraithe amach anseo amháin.

“Ansin thug an tAire mar leithscéal nach féidir glacadh le athrú ar an dlí toisc nach bhfuil sé mar dhualgas cheana féin faoin dlí. Argóint seafóideach a dhéanann neamhaird ar an dualgas atá orainne mar reachtóirí an dlí a fheabhsú chun leasa an phobail.

“Ba chóir go ndéanfadh dul chun cinn sa teicneolaíocht an saol níos éasca dúinn go léir, Gaeilgeoirí san áireamh, seachas muid a bhrú i dtreo an Bhéarla i gcónaí.

“Tá Sinn Féin ag moladh gur chóir go mbeadh rogha Gaeilge ar chomhchaighdeán leis an mBéarla ar gach UMB amach anseo, agus má tá teanga réamhshocruithe mar rogha uathoibreacha ar an bpríomhleathanach, go mbeadh an Ghaeilge mar an default ar mhaithe leis an dtairiscint gníomhach a dhéanamh sa teanga náisiúnta, agus deis agat teanga eile a roghnú más mian leat.

“Molaim don Aire Donohoe machnamh a dhéanamh ar an mbeart seo roimh Céim na Tuarascála má tá spéis aige tacú le normalú na Gaeilge agus seirbhísí bainc a bheith inrochtana don Ghael.”

Finance Minister rejects Irish language option on ATMs – Aengus Ó Snodaigh TD

Sinn Féin spokesperson on Gaeilge, Gaeltacht and the Arts, Aengus Ó Snodaigh TD, has criticised the decision by Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe to reject a proposal that an Irish option be provided on new or updated ATMs in future.

Sinn Féin Finance spokesperson, Pearse Doherty TD, had proposed an amendment to the Finance (Provision of Access to Cash Infrastructure) Bill 2024, to place this requirement on ATMs during Committee Stage debate on the Bill last week.

Teachta Ó Snodaigh said:

“It is a real shame that Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil are totally against progress in the rights of Irish speakers in their daily lives. They do not accept that the country’s consumers includes Irish speakers, and therefore that consumer rights should protect people who wish to do their business through the national language.

“When they rejected this amendment from my colleague, Pearse Doherty, in the Dáil last week, they did not even give an excuse, which is highly unusual and disrespectful.

“I had to ask a parliamentary question to seek an explanation, and it is clear from the response I received that Minister Donohoe had not read the amendment properly.

“The Minister expressed concern that ATMs would be taken out of areas, there would be gaps in service, and huge costs would be imposed on providers as a result of requiring they be reprogrammed, even though it is said clearly in the amendment that there would be no need to change an existing machine as it would only apply to new or reprogrammed machines in future.

“Then the Minister gave the excuse that he could not accept a change to the law because the duty is not already in the law. A ridiculous argument which ignores the duty upon us as legislators to improve the law for the good of the community.

“Improvements in technology should make life easier for all of us, including Irish speakers, instead of always pushing us towards English.

“Sinn Féin is proposing that every ATM in future should have an Irish language option of equal quality with the English, and if a language is to be set as the automatic home page option, Irish should be the default so that the active offer is in the national language, with the option of switching to another language if you want.

“I ask Minister Donohoe to reflect on this policy before Report Stage if he is interested in the normalisation of Irish and ensuring banking services are accessible for Gaels.”