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Gaeltacht Service Towns.
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9.— (1) The Minister may, by order, designate a specified town to be a Gaeltacht Service Town in accordance with this section, where the town concerned is situated in or adjacent to a Gaeltacht Language Planning Area if there are available in that town—
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(a) public services for the Gaeltacht Language Planning Area, and
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(b) social, recreational and commercial facilities that are of benefit to the Gaeltacht Language Planning Area.
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(2) The Minister shall publish, in such form and manner as the Minister considers appropriate, notice of the Minister’s intention to designate a town to be a Gaeltacht Service Town and shall include in the notice—
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(a) the period within which an Irish language plan referred to in subsection (7) is to be prepared and submitted to the Minister, and
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(b) any other information the Minister considers necessary for the purposes of this section.
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(3) An organisation based in the town concerned may apply to Údarás na Gaeltachta or Foras na Gaeilge, as may be appropriate, to be an organisation selected under subsection (5) or (6).
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(4) Where no organisation applies under subsection (3), the Minister may publish another notice under subsection (2) in relation to the town concerned.
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(5) Údarás na Gaeltachta shall select, where the town concerned is situated in a Gaeltacht Language Planning Area and is the subject of a notice under subsection (2), an organisation that has applied under subsection (3) and that, in the opinion of Údarás na Gaeltachta, is the organisation that is the most capable of preparing a plan the purpose of which is to provide for and encourage the increased use of the Irish language in the family, educational, public, social, recreational and commercial life of the town concerned (in this section referred to as an “Irish language plan”), in accordance with prescribed language planning criteria, and when it has done so, it shall notify that organisation in writing of the selection.
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(6) Foras na Gaeilge shall select, where the town concerned is situated otherwise than in a Gaeltacht Language Planning Area and is the subject of a notice under subsection (2), an organisation that has applied under subsection (3) and that, in the opinion of Foras na Gaeilge, is the organisation that is the most capable of preparing an Irish language plan, in accordance with prescribed language planning criteria, and when it has done so, it shall notify that organisation in writing of the selection.
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(7) The organisation concerned shall prepare an Irish language plan in respect of the town concerned and shall submit the plan to the Minister for approval.
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(8) Údarás na Gaeltachta or Foras na Gaeilge, as may be appropriate, shall assist the organisation concerned with respect to the preparation of the Irish language plan concerned.
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(9) The Minister may, where the Minister considers it appropriate to do so, extend the period specified in the notice published under subsection (2) within which the Irish language plan concerned shall be submitted.
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(10) Where the organisation selected under subsection (5) or (6) does not submit the Irish language plan concerned to the Minister within the period referred to in the notice published under subsection (2), or any extension of that period under subsection (9), and the Minister is of the opinion that there is no reasonable prospect that the organisation can submit such a plan within a reasonable time, the Minister may—
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(a) request Údarás na Gaeltachta or Foras na Gaeilge, as may be appropriate, to select another organisation that made an application under subsection (3) to prepare and submit the Irish language plan concerned during the period specified in the notice published under subsection (2), or any extension of that period under subsection (9), and to notify that organisation in writing of the selection, or
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(b) publish another notice under subsection (2) in relation to the town concerned.
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(11) Where the Minister, having regard to prescribed language planning criteria, approves of the Irish language plan submitted to him or her, the Minister shall make an order under subsection (1) in relation to the town concerned.
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(12) Where the Minister, having regard to prescribed language planning criteria, does not approve of an Irish language plan submitted to him or her, the Minister may extend the period concerned to permit the organisation concerned to amend and re-submit the Irish language plan.
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(13) Where the Minister, having regard to prescribed language planning criteria, does not approve of an Irish language plan submitted to him or her, and the Minister is of the opinion that there is no reasonable prospect that the organisation can submit such a plan within a reasonable time, the Minister may—
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(a) request Údarás na Gaeltachta or Foras na Gaeilge, as may be appropriate, to invite another organisation which has applied for selection under subsection (3) to prepare and submit the Irish language plan concerned during the period specified in the notice published under subsection (2) and to notify that organisation in writing of the selection, or
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(b) publish another notice under subsection (2) in relation to the town concerned.
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(14) Where the Minister extends a period under subsection (9) or (12), the provisions of this section apply, with the necessary modifications, to the extended period.
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(15) Where Údarás na Gaeltachta or Foras na Gaeilge selects an organisation following a request to it under subsection (10)(a) or (13)(a), the provisions of this section apply, with the necessary modifications, in relation to that organisation.
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