GAELIC policy in Scotland will soon outlive Gaelic communities, experts have warned, as they called for an urgent change of approach. Professor Conchúr Ó Giollagáin and Iain Caimbeul, a former chief executive of Bòrd na Gàidhlig, said Scotland s Gaelic language policy risks becoming part of the problem . In a new academic paper, they argue existing policy is contributing to the decline of Gaelic communities. Mr Ó Giollagáin, who is director of the University of the Highlands and Islands’ (UHI) Language Sciences Institute, previously led a major study that warned Gaelic-speaking communities are at risk of dying out within a decade.
He made the comments during a meeting of Holyrood s Public Audit and Post-legislative Scrutiny Committee. MSPs on the committee have been scrutinising Bòrd na Gàidhlig following a damning audit report in 2019, which highlighted a string of issues at the quango including “ineffective leadership”. Bòrd na Gàidhlig and the Scottish Government say there have since been significant improvements. Mr Neil said: While I recognise more effort is being made now in terms of scrutiny by Bòrd na Gàidhlig, by the Scottish Government, including improvements in the internal workings of Bòrd na Gàidhlig, what worries me is from the feedback I ve had from the Gaelic community, there is a very strong feeling that Bòrd na Gàidhlig isn t speaking for them.
WITH warnings it could die out as a community language within a decade, the precarious position of Gaelic in Scotland has come under the spotlight in recent months. Shona MacLennan, chief executive of Bòrd na Gàidhlig, the quango responsible for promoting the language, is among those entrusted with making sure it has a future. But in an interview with The Herald on Sunday, the 58-year-old said saving Gaelic is bigger than any one organisation. She said Gaelic speakers feel real anguish over the state of the language, with a range of complicated socioeconomic factors contributing to its difficulties in rural and island areas.