If the political rhetoric about Gaelic-medium education was to carry any credibility, the weakest link of what happens in the secondary sector was going to have to be addressed sooner rather than later. Why would parents want Gaelic-medium education for their youngsters if there was a prospect of, at best, tokenistic provision at secondary level? The absence of comprehensive Gaelic-medium secondary education had the potential, in effect, to put the whole enterprise at risk.
It would therefore be churlish in the extreme not to welcome the announcement of a dedicated Gaelic-medium secondary - and not just for Glasgow (page six). If the ambitions bear fruit, this will be a Scotland-wide initiative eventually, using technology to make a viable venture out of small groups of learners and teachers.
Of course, there are cynics who will argue that fine words butter few parsnips: will there be enough teachers to make the vision a reality? The answer is that we will never know unless we try. The existence of a challenge is no excuse for doing nothing.
