Republic may issue copies of national anthem with passports

An Irish passport COPIES of the Republic’s national anthem should be issued with all future Irish passports, a parliamentary committee in Dublin has recommended.

Demand for Irish passports has soared in Northern Ireland and Great Britain in the wake of the vote to leave the EU.

The initiative is part of a set of protocols proposed by a committee of senators who were tasked with examining how the anthem — Amhran na bhFiann (The Soldier’s Song) — should be protected and promoted.

The committee stopped short of recommending legislative protections for the anthem, including penalties for its misuse.

Members instead called for protocols that would offer guidance on correct usage.

Amhran na bhFiann was first written in English as The Soldier’s Song by Peadar Kearney more than 100 years ago to a melody composed by Patrick Heeney.

The song was translated into Irish by the civil servant and linguist Liam O Rinn.

His version of Amhran na bhFiann was first published in 1923.

The Irish state’s copyright on the anthem lapsed in 2013, and there have been calls for it to be renewed to prevent misuse.

The Seanad Public Consultation Committee conducted hearings on the status, treatment and use of the anthem.

Its recommendations were published in Dublin yesterday.

The proposed protocols would include the Irish, English and Irish Sign Language versions of the anthem, as well as the musical notation as provided by the Irish Defence Forces School of Music.

The committee made a series of recommendations, including that the musical notation of the anthem is included in the Irish passport, and a copy of the anthem and the protocols for its use should be issued with all Irish passports.

It also recommended that every primary and secondary school should be provided with the various versions.