It is nothing short of a national scandal that over 15,000 children are still waiting for an assessment of need. I know these numbers have been read out several times today but I want to keep saying it because it is an absolute scandal that we are saying there are 15,000 children waiting for an assessment of need and that over 90% of those assessments are not being completed within the legally mandated six-month timeframe. In Dublin South Central at the end of 2024 there were 1,652 children waiting over three month…

I am proud to stand here today as a member of the Social Democrats but also as a trade union member and activist for decades at this stage. I thank People Before Profit for introducing this Bill. At its heart, it is about fairness, dignity in the workplace and the fundamental right of workers to a collective voice. This is not a radical idea, but a democratic one. When workers organise, they are not just protecting wages or conditions. They are advocating for a safer, more sustainable and more equitable workplace f…

I wish the Minister the very best of luck. I welcome the opportunity to contribute to today’s debate on the power of higher education, research and skills as economic enablers in a changing world. I echo what previous speakers have said about dropping further education. It is such a valuable part of that Department and I have seen at first hand how further education has changed lives in the communities in which I have lived and worked for a number of years. Yesterday, the Minister delivered his keynote speech at th…

I move: That Dáil Éireann: notes that: — more than 90 per cent of Irish primary schools are under religious patronage, while only 5 per cent are multi-denominational; — a survey by the Irish National Teachers' Organisation found that just 4 per cent of teachers think preparing students for sacraments should be the responsibility of primary schools, while more than two fifths believe that faith formation should not take place at all during school hours; — the Programme for Government: Our Shared Future of the 33rd D…

I thank everybody who participated in today's debate. More importantly, I thank all those parents, educators and campaigners across the country who continue to fight not for privilege but for parity and not for special treatment but for choice. This has been going on for 50 years. I have been a campaigner for multidenominational schools since 2007. As a family of a minority religion as well as strong believers in that religion as a private matter, we needed a school where we would be welcome. Griffith Barracks Mult…

I am delighted to support Sinn Féin’s motion this evening. My constituency is Dublin South Central. Like many here, I have received many emails from parents which outline the prohibitive cost of childcare. I have had emails from people in Ballyfermot, Drimnagh and around Dublin 8 from people who are paying more than €1,000 a month per child. For anyone with more than one child - at one stage I had three children under the age of three - it would cost many thousands. People cannot afford this. It is unsustainable. T…

I thank the Labour Party for its motion on special education. I have heard so much pain, frustration and determination from families throughout my constituency and many constituencies in this country. I have travelled to different places to hear from families. In my constituency of Dublin South-Central, from Ballyfermot to Drimnagh, Inchicore and Crumlin, there are parents at crisis point with their children. They are worn out trying to get a place for their child in a special education class or school. Not only do…

My question is similar to that of the previous speaker with regard to parental choice. I was very disappointed to see Government backbenchers expressing what is maybe a U-turn in what the programme for Government was talking about in 2020 on school patronage. It does not seem to appear in the current programme for Government, which I am a little bit concerned about. With 94% of primary schools being under religious ethos, that means only 6% are not. In areas like my own, 79% of parents are not identifying as Cathol…

I congratulate the Minister on her post. I have not yet had an opportunity to say that to her across the floor. What are her Department's plans to ensure all students, especially children with additional needs, have access to in-school supports such as occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and psychological services? What is the plan to roll them out, for recruitment and resourcing schools throughout the country?

It is great that it will be rolled out. I am anxious to know exactly how far along the implementation of those places is, particularly at third level, for the autumn intake under the Central Admissions Office, CAO. I note from the programme for Government that a plan was set out to double the number of college places for speech and language therapists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and educational psychologists. How far along is that? With regard to expediting qualification routes for professionals who …

I thank the Minister. Going further than that, it is great to see there will be a roll-out of these services and supports to young people and children in special schools. From looking at it, what we would like to see from an education perspective is that young people who need a service in mainstream schools will be able to access it. There are children throughout the country who need that support. School is a fantastic place to have that support and I would like speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and…

I am sharing time with Deputy Paul Murphy.

No, Deputy Murphy will go first.

Like Deputy Murphy and I am sure many others, we have seen numerous emails coming in from parents worried about how this is going to affect their children. In 2021, 1,300 students received a maximum of 625 CAO points, which I am sure everybody knows is an extremely difficult thing to do. That was more than double the number in 2020 and nearly six times the figures from 2019. Now we are in a situation where we have students who are achieving the top points. With the maximum points reached and only a certain number o…

I thank the Minister of State for acknowledging the huge pressure students are under. Having worked in education for many years and having my own children go through the leaving certificate, it is a time of huge pressure not only for the student but also for everyone around him or her. It is quite a difficult situation. At what point will we be rid of this system? When will what was put in place during the pandemic period be over? I am a little concerned because in the previous proceedings, we talked about the need…

During the Taoiseach's maiden speech in June 2020 following the election, he mentioned the school completion programme. I do not know whether he knows that school completion co-ordinators and project workers throughout the country were delighted that it was mentioned in his maiden speech. As he probably knows, I worked for a school completion programme, Ballymun Anseo, as Deputy Paul McAuliffe knows because I had his head melted about the school completion programme. I am now here, so I will melt his head again. Wh…

Like my colleague, I was a youth worker for many years and worked on the school completion programme. Anyone who has worked with young people knows just how amazing they are, how hopeful they are and how clear they are in their vision for the future. They love their friends and their families. When things are going well for young people, it is a positive experience to be around them. However, Ireland has a real difficulty with young people. Yesterday, I went to an event with the Ombudsman for Children, who was talk…

I wish the Minister the very best of luck in his new role. I look forward to working with him. How does the Government plan to protect third level students who are in digs accommodation? Over recent weeks and months, we have had people into the audiovisual room explaining the very difficult situation they are in with regard to their accommodation. Digs accommodation may not be the first preference for many students and it may not be ideal for either the student or the landlord but, in a housing crisis, it is often …

I thank the Minister for that. I agree that there needs to be a variety of accommodation. My own daughter is in college and travels quite a long distance to get there-----

-----because there is no on-campus accommodation, which would be ideal for a great many people. It is also very expensive. I live in Dublin 8 and quite a lot of student accommodation was built in the area over recent years. However, it is totally unaffordable for the average student with rents of €1,250 per month. If it is a five-week month, it is €1,350. That accommodation is totally unaffordable for most students. Digs accommodation is affordable but the difficulty is that, as we have heard over the last while, s…