THE EUROPEAN CHARTER FOR REGIONAL OR MINORITY LANGUAGES

In July 2001, the Government of the United Kingdom gave official recognition to the Ulster-Scots language under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. The Government recognised that Ulster-Scots met the definition of a regional or minority language and is therefore committed to applying the objectives and principles of Article 7 (Part II) of the Charter to Ulster-Scots.

The objectives and principles of Article 7 are set out in Annex 2 of this Plan.

The activities under the Strategic Themes set out in the later part of this Corporate Plan indicate the commitment of the Ulster-Scots Agency towards fulfilling its role in achieving the objectives of the Charter. In particular, the following projects align with those objectives: -

1)            The language planning elements of dictionary, tape-recorded survey, computerised text base and translation service.

2)           The curriculum development project for Primary Schools and its extension to second level education.

3)            The sponsorship and grant aid programme.

4)           The Ulster-Scots Agency newsletter – “The Ulster-Scot”.

The Ulster-Scots Agency continues to be informed by the Charter in developing its Corporate and Business Plans.