I ask what plans the Minister and his Department have to reduce the student contribution fee, given that the programme for Government commitment is to "continue to reduce the student contribution fee over the lifetime of the Government to ease the financial burden on students and families at the start of each academic year". I am quite concerned about the Minister's comments on 15 March this year, where he said that it may not be the best use of public moneys. I am aware that two other Deputies have also asked this…

When the SUSI grant is being made available, in terms of means, it is taking into account both parents and the individual. If a student has a part-time job outside of college, it is taking into account those means as well, so there is no encouragement there for a student to have a part-time job. I am quite concerned at the lack of communication between the Minister and the Tánaiste. On 11 November, the Tánaiste stated that a huge priority of his was to abolish student fees. Less than four months later, the Minister…

The programme for Government.

I thank the Minister, and I appreciate that. The Minister has the opportunity to have the same impact the former Minister, Niamh Bhreathnach, had in 1995. He has that opportunity to make that same impact where, across all socioeconomic backgrounds, third level education was fully accessible because third level fees were abolished. The Minister could have that same impact the former Labour Party Minister, Niamh Bhreathnach, had. I am asking the Minister sincerely and I am absolutely willing to engage with him on thi…

I raise the 215 Blarney bus. The 215 Blarney bus goes from Mahon Point to Blarney. The Minister of State can appreciate it is coming from Mahon Point and through the city, so the timing is quite difficult. I want to make the Minister of State aware of it. I know he will not have any answers on that. Will he look into it?

I thank the Chair.

Schools are at absolute breaking point financially. Having spoken to a number of principals in recent days, I have come to the understanding that schools are unable to continue providing an education because they do not have the funds to operate. One principal informed me that the Department of Education and the financial support services unit, FSSU, have told schools to take money out of their hot meals account to pay their bills. That is absolutely outrageous. In other instances, the Department has advised school…

You are.

To clean up your mess.

I thank my colleague, Deputy Wall, for the amount of work he has done on this motion, which I really welcome. I welcome those from Family Carers Ireland, who are in the Visitors Gallery, and the carers who spoke to us today. This motion is really important. A huge number of people across the country provide 24-7 dedicated care to family members. I want to take the opportunity to commend every single carer across the country, but in particular young carers. This motion is seeking the opportunity for young carers to …

Will the Taoiseach clarify whether a recruitment freeze has been put in place by the Department of Education in regard to special needs assistant, SNA, provision? I had a conversation with a primary school principal last night in my home town of Mallow in which she informed me that the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, sanctioned 1.83 SNA positions for her school last Tuesday. The next day, the special educational needs organiser, SENO, rang the principal to tell her that a directive from the Department…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle. I thank Sinn Féin for tabling this important motion, which the Labour Party will support. Mar nach mbeidh mé in ann é seo a rá go hiomlán i gceart as Gaeilge, leanfaidh mé ar aghaidh as Béarla. As I do not speak sufficient Irish, I will continue my statement in English. I assure the House and those who spoke in Irish that it is something I am working on with my old Irish teacher from school. It is an important motion. I thank Sinn Féin for tabling it. The Irish language is…

I ask the Minister to outline her plans to reduce the pupil-teacher ratio to 19:1 over the lifetime of the Government. It is an important question. As the Minister knows, a lot more work is feasible in a classroom if a teacher has a smaller number of pupils.

I thank the Minister and appreciate her response. I want to work with the Minister and Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan. Ultimately, the Department is trying to benefit students. The most important people across the country are those who need a good education and start in life. We have serious issues when it comes to the number of teachers in our classrooms. That is firsthand knowledge. This issue ranges across not just the Department of Education, but other Departments. One of the biggest issues for teachers is …

I am very glad that the Minister said she is committed to increasing the supply of teachers. That is important. In 2024, the Teachers' Union of Ireland, TUI, completed a survey of new entrants to the profession. Some 35% responded and said that over recent years they did not receive a contract for full hours when they entered the profession. Some 12% said it is extremely difficult to get a full contract. When entering the teaching profession, I found that getting a full-time contract was difficult. There are matern…

The Taoiseach will be aware that a unit with 48 single beds has opened in Mallow General Hospital. I have two questions on this. Two floors of the four-floor unit are still not open. I ask the Taoiseach to look at the feasibility of opening them. I also ask him to ask the Minister for Health, as I have, to look into the transfer of the blood transfusion service from Mallow General Hospital to Cork University Hospital as it is putting more pressure on CUH. Taking the current service away from Mallow General Hospital…

I will be sharing time with Deputy Kelly.

Thank you. I welcome the motion from Sinn Féin. If I follow up on a query from a parent or from someone my own age about a delay in getting an appointment for a test, the RSA tells me to contact different test centres around the country. Asking a person from Cork to come to Dublin or even further afield to do their test is absolute madness. There is no quality there when it comes to trying to get those tests and those appointments fulfilled as quickly as possible. I will give the example of Evan, who is around my a…

Last year I stood with my colleagues and over 40,000 teachers to protest against the rushed leaving certificate reform proposed by the Government. The Minister's predecessor, Deputy Foley, referred to the reform as equity and excellence for all. The most important part of reform to any curriculum, as I think the Minister will agree, is to benefit students. Take two students, one in a local voluntary school and one in a private fee-paying school. It will come as no surprise that private schools are well equipped wit…

Absolutely. My greatest objective is that students across the country are open to this reform and benefit from it. The Minister said she is fully equipping schools. For seven years I was taught in prefabs. That is what happens in local voluntary schools across this country. The Government pays €90 million per year for prefabs. The Minister referred to business. I taught business studies up to November. In September I took on a cohort of transition year students. I had to tell them I knew nothing about the specifica…