Commentary on provisions of Act Section 2: Irish language
Section 2 inserts a new Part 7B (sections 78J to 78Q) and Schedule 9B in the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to make provision for the Irish language, including the creation of an Irish language Commissioner and the official recognition of the status of the Irish language in Northern Ireland (see section 78J).
	Section 78K establishes an Irish Language Commissioner. The Commissioner will be appointed by the First Minister and deputy first Minister and further provision in respect of their appointment is made in Schedule 9B.
	Section 78L provides for the principal aim and functions of the Irish Language Commissioner. The principal aim of the Commissioner is to enhance and protect the use of the Irish language by public authorities when they are providing services to the public in Northern Ireland.
	The Commissioner will be required to publish best practice standards on the use of the Irish language in the provision of services, and public authorities are required to have due regard to those best practice standards (see section 78O). The First Minister and deputy First Minister are able to direct the Commissioner in relation to the Commissioner’s functions. For example, the First Minister and deputy First Minister may want to require the Commissioner to consider developing a particular category of best practice standards.
	Sections 78M and 78N make provision for best practice standards. These are written standards about the use of the Irish language by public authorities as mentioned above. They must be prepared by the Commissioner and then submitted to the First Minister and deputy First Minister for their approval. Once approved, they must be published. Different standards may be published in respect of different public authorities and when preparing them the Commissioner must have due regard to any guidance given by the First Minister and deputy First Minister, and consult such public authorities or other persons as the Commissioner considers appropriate.
	Under section 78N, the Commissioner must review any standards every five years from when they were published. They may be revised or withdrawn following such a review, or otherwise if the Commissioner considers it necessary or desirable to do so (this may be, for example, because they have been found to be unlawful in some respects).
	Section 78O requires public authorities to have due regard to the published best practice standards in providing services to the public in Northern Ireland. They must also prepare and publish a plan, setting out how they propose to comply with that duty and consult the Irish Language Commissioner about it. If the best practice standards that apply to an authority are revised, it must revise and re-publish its plan.
	Section 78P makes provision for a complaints procedure. The Commissioner must investigate a complaint if they receive one from a person claiming to have been directly affected by the act or omission giving rise to the complaint, the complaint is made within three months of when the complainant became aware of it, and the public authority concerned is aware of it and has been given a reasonable opportunity to consider it and respond. If the Commissioner decides not to investigate a complaint, which meets those criteria, they must provide the complainant with written reasons for why they are not doing so (see subsections (1) and (2)). The Commissioner may carry out such an investigation in private if they consider it appropriate.
	If the Commissioner does investigate the complaint, then they must notify both the complainant and the public authority of that and give the public authority a reasonable opportunity to comment on the matters raised. The Commissioner must set out their findings in a report (subsection (3)).
	If the Commissioner finds that a public authority did fail to comply with its obligations under 78O (viz to have due regard to best practice standards, prepare or revise a plan), their report may include recommendations as to how the public authority can remedy its failure and avoid future failures. The report must be laid before the Northern Ireland Assembly.
	Section 78Q, defines "public authority" for the purposes of Part 7B. It is defined as an authority listed in Schedule 3 to the Public Services Ombudsman Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 but excludes the three new authorities themselves and the North/South Language Body.
	As under Part 7A, the First Minister and deputy First Minister acting jointly may by regulations add or remove authorities to or from the definition of public authority (including for particular purposes or in relation to a particular function). The power to add authorities only applies to public authorities within the devolved competence of the Northern Ireland Assembly and is not applicable to institutions in reserved or excepted area.
	Section 2(2) and Schedule 2 amends the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to insert Schedule 9B "The Irish Language Commissioner". Schedule 9B makes further provision regarding the status and tenure of the Commissioner and other matters such as the appointment of staff, the exercise of the Commissioner’s functions by staff, funding of the Commissioner by the Executive Office and keeping of its accounts. Provision is also made to enable the Executive Office to provide staff, services and facilities to the Commissioner, and for the Office of Identity and Cultural Expression to provide services for the purpose of assisting the Commissioner in the exercise of its functions.