New Decade New Approach
The British Deaf Association (Northern Ireland) congratulates all parties on reaching agreement to restore the devolved Government in Northern Ireland. We are also delighted that both British and Irish Sign Languages have a prominent place within the ‘New Decade New Approach’ proposals.
Damian Barry, Chief Executive Officer of the BDA, stated, “We warmly welcome the inclusion of Sign Language in the ‘New Decade New Approach’ proposals as this provides an opportunity to build upon our earlier work with the Sign Language Framework and move towards achieving equality of access for Deaf Sign Language users in Northern Ireland. We note that the parties agree to “the process of drafting clauses commencing with a view to introducing a Bill to the Assembly at the early stage”. This gives us tangible hope and belief that a British Sign Language/Irish Sign Language (BSL/ISL) Act will not be far away. The BDA Northern Ireland looks forward to meaningful engagement with Stormont and the Department of Communities on behalf of the Deaf Community, both BSL and ISL users, in Northern Ireland”.
For media enquiries, please contact:
Justin Smith
Research and Communications Manager
research.comms@bda.org.uk
