HANSON ANNOUNCES PROGRESS ON ULSTER-SCOTS ACADEMY Culture Minister, David Hanson MP, has announced a major milestone towards the establishment of an Ulster-Scots Academy. Mr Hanson said: “I am pleased to announce that Government has agreed to support an independent Ulster-Scots Academy with university affiliation. “I believe that the Academy has the broad support of the many individuals and groups who have been campaigning for the Ulster-Scots language to be preserved and developed.” The Minister explained that the £12 million proposal for the Academy stemmed from the Government’s commitments in the Good Friday Agreement 1998 and in the Joint Declaration 2003 between the British and Irish Governments. Mr Hanson continued: “I have established an Implementation Group comprising members of the Ulster-Scots community, Queen’s University and the University of Ulster, chaired by Dr Philip Robinson. The members of the Group have been appointed on an individual basis for their interest and expertise. “It is being set up for a period of up to 18 months to advise on how the Ulster-Scots Academy should be established, and will consult widely. It will also conduct an equality impact assessment of its proposals for the Academy. I look forward to receiving the Group’s proposals in due course.” The Minister added that the establishment of the Academy would not compromise the statutory remit of the Ulster-Scots Agency to promote the Ulster-Scots language but would add to the totality of resources available for the language’s better promotion.