Last-ditch appeal from the Gaelic grassroots

EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND - FEBRUARY 25: Kate Forbes, Deputy First Minister speaks with the media prior to the final Scottish Budget Debate at the Scottish Parliament on February 25, 2025 in Edinburgh, Scotland. In a preliminary vote earlier this month, MSP's backed the Scottish government's Budget 74 to 30, with 21 abstentions. This is the SNP's first budget since they stopped working with the Green Party in government. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) : The Scottish Government - with Gaelic speaker Kate Forbes as Deputy First Minister - has been warned that the Bill risks being seen as a "cynical ploy".

Gaelic language campaigners have made a last-ditch impassioned appeal for substantial changes to the Scottish Languages Bill in order to provide a proper framework that will enable Gaelic to be sufficiently supported in its traditional heartlands.

While the legislation currently stipulates the creation of “areas of linguistic significance" it does not come with a recommendation for adjoining financial support which could underpin additional activity on the ground.

The Bill is currently at Stage Three and while it’s been met with strong criticism, both from campaigners and the Scottish Parliament's Education, Children and Young People Committee, it has remained unchanged in terms of any substantive amendments.

The local campaign group Misneachd issued a strong appeal for change.

In a statement to the Gazette, they said: “The language is currently at crisis point in its few remaining communities, and at the recent census became a minority language in Na h-Eileanan Siar for the first time.”

The group proposed a number of amendments which they said was “based on the Irish Gaeltacht Act 2012 which has now been in force in Ireland for 10 years and offers a clear practical example of what direct actions could be added to the bill to ensure it has a meaningful impact at a community level”.

They added: “While we obviously want to see urgent radical action, including substantial additional funding, to address the ongoing language-shift in the last remaining Gaelic speaking communities – something which constitutes a crisis for Gaelic generally – we do welcome the draft Languages Bill and see it as an opportunity to establish support structures.”

The Misneachd responses were mainly based on the “areas of linguistic significance” element. They said: “While local communities absolutely must be involved in shaping the priorities and Local Language Plans, holding consultations on their establishment seems like a waste of time and money - particularly in areas of higher speaker density.

“We strongly believe that Areas of Linguistic Significance should automatically be established by the Bill in areas where 20% or more of the local population speak Gaelic.”

They continued: “There is no mention of what size an Area of Linguistic Significance should be. It would be very unhelpful, for example, for the Western Isles to be designated as one Area of Linguistic Significance, duplicating the area covered by the Council's Gaelic Language Plan - much more local, community-based language planning is needed.”

They said that while the Bill makes extra provision to strengthen the legal right to Gaelic medium education, “it is less clear how the Bill will enhance the day to day use of Gaelic in the community, by Grazings Committees, at local community events, etc., and how support will be given to families raising their children with Gaelic as their mother tongue.”

Writing in this week’s Gazette, Iain Campbell, a research fellow with UHI’s Language Sciences Institute, said the Bill “requires substantial change”.

In a direct appeal to the Scottish Government, Mr Campbell said there needed to be an “adequately resourced management plan linked to community priorities” along with the areas of linguistic importance designation.

“Anything less will be viewed by communities as a cynical political gesture without any real substance or impact,” he said.