SURVEY reveals those in the Republic think the Irish language should be protected in the North.
A new survey has revealed what the people of the Republic of Ireland think of the contentious Irish language issue in the North.
The Irish language act has become one of the main stumbling blocks in the power-sharing talks in the North, with both Sinn Fein and the DUP completely divided on the issue.
The Dup says it cannot agree to a dedicated Irish language act, while Sinn Fein says that a return to direct rule from Westminster is not a possibility.
The poll was conducted by Amarach Research on behalf of RTE’s Claire Byrne Live programme and included over 1,000 Irish adults aged 18 years or more.
When people in the Republic were asked whether or not the Irish language should be protected in the North, 54% of those polled said yes.
23% said no, while the same amount said they didn’t know.
Northern Ireland has been operating without a functioning government since January of 2017, and an agreement was believed to be close when Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Prime Minister Theresa May travelled to Belfast in recent weeks.
However, the issue of the Irish language act poses a barrier to negotiations which remains to be overcome.
