Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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100. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if the proposed Education (Admission to School) Bill 2013 proposes to enact legislation that will prevent Gaelscoileanna from having an admissions policy that gives priority to children being raised through Irish; if he considers that this legislation will have an adverse effect on the Irish language; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24599/13]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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As the Deputy is aware, I announced at the recent Teacher Union Conferences that I will shortly bring to Government draft heads of a bill – the Education (Admission to School) Bill 2013. I will seek to publish the Bill in draft form to allow a full public discussion, including inputs from the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Education and Social Protection and the education partners. I also intend to publish draft regulations that I plan to make when the Bill is enacted.

In bringing forward these proposals, it is not my intention to unnecessarily intrude into how schools do their business. My policy objective is to ensure that the way in which schools decide on applications is structured, fair and transparent. As the Bill and the Regulations will be published in draft form, they will also be subject to a lot of detailed scrutiny before becoming law. I will be reflecting carefully on the views expressed in the consultation process to ensure they strike the right balance between school autonomy and fairness in our education system.