Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I am glad Deputy Griffin has raised the matter, because it has not been discussed. At the moment it will be a school certificate, similar to first year exam results or the report at the end of first, second or fifth year. Transition year does not have an exam in the same way. Many people have raised the concern that different certificates would not have the same standing - in other words, that one school in a town would have a better reputation or a stronger perception of academic excellence than another school, for example.

Given that we do not want people to leave school at 15 years of age, we do not envisage the certificate being of that significance for people going for a job. However, the concern has been expressed consistently by many people and I am open to discussing it.