THE first ever Irish language policy approved by Belfast City Council has been hailed "a historic milestone for the Irish language in the city".
The policy sets out how the council plans to promote and use Irish across its services, including interpreting and translation, key documents and publications, signage at facilities, on the council website and within the council’s corporate identity, including its logo.
Throughout August and September, councillors on the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee reviewed feedback from the public consultation, which drew responses from residents, council staff, trade unions and members of the council’s Irish Language Stakeholder Forum.
Following this engagement, the committee agreed to adopt the policy proposals, and that there should be a single bilingual logo for the organisation – a move aligned with international best practice in promoting minority languages. Design work for the new identity and logo is ongoing, and further engagement will be undertaken with trade unions as part of this work.
Alongside the policy, councillors also agreed a high-level implementation plan to guide delivery of the policy over the next two years, with a focus on supporting staff and enhancing access to services in Irish. £1.9 million of funding was previously agreed, at July’s full council meeting, to implement the policy.
The new policy was given the green light at last night's monthly meeting of Belfast City Council, follows a public consultation which ran from August to November 2024.
A DUP proposal for no changes to be made to staff uniforms failed by 42 votes to 17.
Afterwards, unionist representatives in the council signed a legal call-in on the decision. A Judicial Review is also expected if the call-in fails.
Unionist councillors have signed a legal call in on the decision
Sinn Féin Councillor Natasha Brennan, Chair of the Strategic Policy and Resources Committee, said: “This is a historic milestone for the Irish language in Belfast.
“Our council is delivering an ambitious and groundbreaking policy which aims to promote, protect and celebrate the Irish language across the city.
Sinn Féin councillors in Belfast City Hall last night
“This policy represents a major step forward in fostering linguistic diversity, supporting cultural heritage and ensuring everyone who wishes to access our services in Irish is able to do so.
“We have committed £1.9 million to begin implementing the policy over the next two years, with regular updates being brought back to councillors, so we can see how access to our services and facilities, through Irish, is increasing over time.”
Welcoming the adoption of the new policy, Pól Deeds, Deputy Chief Executive of Foras na Gaeilge who is the incoming Irish Language Commissioner and a member of the council’s Irish Language Stakeholder Forum, said: “Foras na Gaeilge commends Belfast City Council for developing this Irish language policy.
"The council is recognising, through this policy, the growth and spread of the Irish language community in the city, as well as every Irish speaker and learner in the city and those Irish speakers who visit here, be that as a tourist or those who are here to do business which contributes to our economy.
“This policy also provides an opportunity to reach out to the groups and people in our society who have felt, for one reason or another, that the Irish language was not relevant to them. This policy can be a tool to bring our community together, to celebrate our rich history and to share a more enriched life together in Belfast in the time to come.”
Ciarán Mac Giolla Bhéin, President of Conradh na Gaeilge and Language Planning Coordinator with the West Belfast Language Plan, Fís an Phobail, added: “The Irish language is flourishing across our city.
Polasaí nua Gaeilge aontaithe ag @belfastcc 👏👏👏
— Fís an Phobail (@FisanPhobail) October 1, 2025
Ré nua don teanga sa chathair i ndiaidh blianta fada di a bheith imeallaithe - más mall is mithid!
Eiseamláir leagtha amach do gach comhairle fud an tuaiscirt anois 💪 pic.twitter.com/g6wuTtcODp
"Our Gaelscoileanna are growing, the number of families raising their children through Irish, and the number of people learning Irish are all growing and we have a vibrant cultural scene which is to the fore of the national language revival movement. Over recent years, the Irish language community has brought the campaign for language rights to the centre of our public institutions and shared spaces.
“We have been working with Irish language groups and speakers, Belfast City Council and councillors for almost a decade on this policy. We have helped design this policy based on the fundamental principles of parity of esteem enshrined in the Good Friday Agreement to take 'resolute action' to develop and support the Irish language.
"We used guidance from the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the Equality Commission, our own Humans Rights Commission and Foras na Gaeilge. The product of that long process is a progressive, minority rights compliant Irish language policy.
“We wish to commend all of those parties across the City Council who support this inclusive, best practice policy, council staff who have been working diligently on this, alongside the thousands of activists who have made this change a reality.
"Many will remember when Irish speakers were actively thrown out of Belfast City Hall for speaking their native language in council.
"Today, Belfast, Béal Feirste, will become a beacon of equality across this island regarding language rights and this policy will reflect the status of the ever growing Irish language revival across the city. This is another major milestone in our campaign towards equality and comprehensive language rights.”
