Commentary on Sections Promotion, support and guidance Section 16: Guidance
60.This section amends section 9 of the 2005 Act (guidance on Gaelic education) to convert the existing power of Bòrd na Gàidhlig to issue guidance on Gaelic education into a duty. Subsection (3) clarifies that this guidance may, in particular, cover the provision of Gaelic education in schools. Subsection (4) ensures that any relevant public authority having functions relating to Gaelic education must have regard to the guidance in carrying out its functions. A “relevant public authority” is defined in section 10(2) of the 2005 Act to mean a Scottish public authority, the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body or a cross-border public authority in relation to functions exercisable in Scotland that do not relate to a reserved matter. The meaning of “Scottish public authority” is given by section 126 of the Scotland Act 1998 to be “any public body, public office or holder of such an office whose functions are exercisable only in or as regards Scotland”.