I assure the Deputy there is no inertia or lack of will to support young people studying the language. I was in a school yesterday and was asked this question by a student. I want students to enjoy studying the language and, most importantly, speaking it. On the figures, it is important to say that in the 2024-25 school year, there were over 19,000 exemptions. That is higher than we would like. At the same time, given the number of Ukrainian students who have come into the system, about half of those are students w…

This Government is fully committed to ensuring that every child has a positive school experience with access to qualified and engaged teachers who are completely dedicated and committed to supporting their learning. It is fair to say that we have a fantastic cohort of teachers who are committed to just that. Over 97% of allocated teaching posts are filled and the number of unfilled allocated posts in DEIS or rural schools is comparable to that in all other schools. The data, which is based on our payroll, is not su…

One of the first things that I did, and this was directly in response to an ask from the unions, was make changes to ensure that teachers were able to gain permanent roles more quickly, after one year as opposed to two. That was one of the first asks that I had. It was one of the first things that I did and I have said that I will do more. The Deputy mentioned the fact that there are certain subjects, in particular in post-primary schools, where there is a greater challenge in identifying teachers. I have provided …

I think I have been clear as Minister that nothing is off the table but I have also shown that I am willing to take action on certain measures. Reducing the length of time for permanent contracts was the first one. Only in recent weeks, I made sure that people who have qualified abroad can have their skills recognised here, and I am doing it for a longer period and potentially putting that on a more permanent footing.

We need to look at all of those.

I think I have been very clear.

The Deputy either wants to hear the answer or does not.

The Deputy either wants to hear the answer or does not.

I cannot do everything at once. What I have said clearly is that I am willing to look at every measure. In fact, I have met with the unions many times. My teams engage with them regularly on all of the issues that the Deputy has outlined but he is talking about giving teachers an opportunity to move from Dublin to other areas when it is clear that the shortages are in Dublin and some of the larger populated areas. We have to take every issue into consideration when we are making changes to any structure or resource…

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. I am conscious and aware of both schools. I regularly visit schools, including the two the Deputy has mentioned. My Department has a strong focus on provision for school place needs, underpinned by robust forward planning including demographic analysis informed by residential development plans. Dunshaughlin is an area that has seen significant growth. It will continue to see that growth, thankfully, in the years head. Under the NDP, my Department's approach will be to con…

That is the next stage.

There is nothing unusual or different in this project. I cannot fully commit to the reasons other contractors pulled out. Perhaps there was other work they were doing and there was too heavy a load. Again, we cannot change the reasons for it. We can just make sure that the work is being done now to make sure the next stage can be moved onto as quickly as possible. There are no delays at present. It is a matter of going through the different stages, including the paperwork and the information that has been provided.…

Over the past five years alone, 1,300 projects have been progressed. These are new schools, large-scale projects, additional accommodation projects and emergency works projects. There have been 1,300 projects over the past five years. That is €6 billion that is being spent right across the country. Looking at the work that has been done, I compliment the work of the building unit and the team in the Department because we and they are a team that can deliver a significant amount of work within the budget we have. Ob…

I was pleased to be in a position to officially launch the new online survey for our primary schools today. This essentially enables parents and guardians of children in primary school, and of those who will attend primary school, and the teachers, staff and boards of management in our primary schools, to take part in a survey. There were three very simple and straightforward questions in the survey: whether people want their school be single sex or co-educational; whether they want their child or children to be ta…

While this survey is for primary schools, this will last for six weeks and then we will need time to collate that information and decide based on the responses where there needs to be further engagement with communities if there is a demand for change. On the issue of patronage, there is not the same breakdown that we might see in primary schools. About 50% of our post-primary schools are denominational and about 50% are non-denominational. However, I accept that in certain areas that is not the case and there is n…

I acknowledge the Deputy's absolute commitment to supporting our special schools and supporting children with additional needs. Working with the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, I was really pleased to have been able to secure additional funding in the budget. There was an anomaly there when students reached the age of 12 that they were not receiving the capitation funding that other students in mainstream schools were getting. It is important that was levelled and that anomaly was changed. The Minister of State…

Investment and expenditure on sports facilities in both primary and post-primary schools is an element of the overall expenditure and investment in the schools building programme. Practically all schools have outdoor play areas although I accept that many of them vary depending on the different schools. Many schools use adjacent local community facilities and we encourage the dual use of different facilities that are close to each other. The provision of outdoor play areas forms part of the accommodation brief for …

Maybe I can engage with the Deputy further on the particular school. Where repairs need to be made to existing playgrounds or play spaces and certainly where there is a danger for students, schools may apply under the emergency works scheme or indeed the minor works scheme. I am pleased that under the new national development plan, NDP, funding will continue to be available for the emergency works scheme and the minor works grants. It is really important that as many schools as possible can avail of that. Over the …

It is essential that every school - irrespective of whether there is a perception that some can pay for more than others - has access to the minor works, emergency works and summer works schemes, as well as being able to benefit from the larger capital programme. More will apply for the summer works scheme than will get funding, so it is a matter of determining where the need is most acute and how to prioritise that. There is a system and structure within the Department, but where there is a danger to children or w…

At the outset, I wish to say that my Department has a strong track record of delivery. Since 2020, my Department has invested more than €6 billion in our schools throughout the country under the national development plan. As I mentioned earlier, this involves the completion of over 1,300 school building projects. Given the fact that there are 4,000 schools across the country, the delivery of 1,300 school projects over the last number of years is a significant achievement. In July, the Government announced a capital…