I wish to share time with colleagues.

I thank the Labour Party for bringing forward this motion. I advise visitors and people watching the debate that it is not usual for a Minister to come here and say she does not disagree with anything in the motion and then oppose it. What is the difference between the Government motion and the Labour Party motion, which is similar to the Sinn Féin motion that was tabled in recent weeks? The first call on the Government by the Labour Party is to "ensure the right of every child to an appropriate school place in the…

I welcome the establishment of a joint committee on artificial intelligence and wish the chair, Deputy Malcolm Byrne, well in his role. I am happy to be appointed to the committee by Deputy McDonald. I am also my party's education and youth spokesperson and attended the teachers' conferences held by the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland, ASTI, and the Teachers Union of Ireland, TUI, last week. I heard first-hand the deep concerns about the potential use of AI. The Taoiseach referenced the digital divide and…

Last night in the Dáil, the Minister for Education doubled down on her intention to continue with the accelerated roll-out of senior cycle reform and a start date of September 2025. This is despite the significant concerns raised by school leaders across the State, including the tens of thousands of teachers who protested on this issue last November. On the current trajectory, they say we are building advantage on advantage and disadvantage on disadvantage. That is before we think of the impact of artificial intell…

There are real concerns.

I wish to ask the Minister her views on the number of schools reporting funding crises related to increased energy, insurance and other costs and that have not been matched with increased central funding; if she is concerned with the number of schools referred to the financial services support unit, for example; how she intends to respond to this funding crisis; and if she will make a statement on the matter.

It is evident that the Minister is not doing enough and her plan is to continue to not do enough. In the past month, a cursory look at the Dáil Chamber showed that at least 15 TDs from every party raised funding concerns on behalf of dozens of local schools. In every case, it was about insufficient funding and money that was intended for programme A, whether that be educational disadvantage, summer works or hot school meals, being used instead for day-to-day running costs: wages, insurance, energy, electricity and …

The people who deserve a huge amount of credit here, given the financial pressure they are under, are school principals, school leaders and school communities. In many of these cases they are keeping schools operational that, without their effort, would be under the water. I recognise there have been increased levels of funding, but there has also been a far greater level of increase in demands, for example, insurance costs. I have figures that show many schools are spending at least 25% of their budget on insuranc…

We cannot be running from one crisis to the next.

That is exactly what is happening. You are robbing Peter to pay Paul.

What measures is the Minister taking to ensure children are protected and safe in the online world while at school, will she acknowledge that the €9 million phone pouches are an expensive distraction and that a more comprehensive response is required, and will she make a statement on the matter?

I thank the Minister. Children are being exposed to extreme violence, including sexual violence and pornography, and some social media platforms trade on hate and division. That has real implications where people are suggesting, and I do not disagree with them, that there is a very significant experiment with our children and policymakers are very often behind the curve. There is a challenge for all of us. I have quite a cynical view of voluntary codes and poorly accessed resources. I would be interested in the ext…

We need specific timelines and measures because we can all agree in the round here, and I do not disagree with a word that the Minister has said, but what we need from the Government is action and implementation on this. For example, while this is not the Minister's responsibility, we have light-touch regulation and it needs to be improved, with age verification and recommender settings. Children, not much older than junior to senior infants, potentially have access to pornography in their pockets. That has to be t…

Some of that is already outdated.

I have a later question that should have been grouped with this question. Will the Minister address the issue of artificial intelligence as a concern among those in the education sector?

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for selecting this important issue for discussion tonight and the Minister of State for being here. This is a familiar issue which is frustrating for residents and business owners in the area of Duleek, Donore and surrounding areas. The issue is creaking water infrastructure leading to water bursts all too frequently. They are unscheduled and in many cases are for many hours. It happened as recently as yesterday, the day before, ten days before that, and the day before that. It is a patt…

The solution is the immediate prioritisation or fast-tracking of the Staleen water treatment plant to Windmill Hill reservoir project. I want to put a couple of points on the record. A public meeting is scheduled on this issue for tomorrow week, Thursday, at 8.30 p.m. in the Duleek-Bellewstown community centre. I would encourage representatives of Uisce Éireann and the Minister or Minister of State with responsibility to attend that. The meeting is organised by Senator Sharon Keogan and it will be important to have…

Anyone interested in the issue will have heard the Taoiseach's previous answer in regard to SOSAD Ireland, which the Minister of State handed to him, ten times over. That reply does not answer the question he was asked. I will ask it again. The question relates to interim funding to keep the doors open on these vital services between now and when SOSAD Ireland can continue to engage in the long-term, sustainable section 39 funding. The question is in regard to the interim funding of in the region of €300,000 that i…

I raise the research published today or yesterday by the ESRI, which shows the crucial role of the school completion programme in supporting student attendance and engagement and highlights staffing and funding challenges. Among the major issues highlighted is the lack of referral pathways into therapies. Will that be looked at with a view to potentially delivering school-based therapies? Second, there is the issue of funding. They are not yet back at pre-2008 levels. This is a hugely important programme and servic…

Can I call for a quorum? We do not have a quorum. We need five in the Chamber. Is that the case? I think it is. It is an important debate.