Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

We might be able to deal with the issue without putting it into the Bill. Deputy Conaghan is right on that point. I appreciate Deputy Boyd Barrett's concern but there is already provision in regard to informing people that they are not on the register. I will explain it in more detail.

Section 30 of the 2001 Act provides that a person who is employed as a teacher in a recognised school shall not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be paid from Oireachtas funds where he or she is not a registered teacher or where he or she stands removed or suspended from the register. A substantial communication campaign took place in preparation for the commencement of section 30 of the Act, which was commenced last year, so that all teachers would be well aware of the requirement to be registered and the implications of non-registration.

While it appears that the intention behind the amendment is to ensure that a teacher's salary would not be discontinued without that teacher being informed, there are appropriate provisions elsewhere within the Bill that address this issue. Requirements in regard to the council notifying teachers of decisions made in respect of initial registration, renewal of registration and in regard to fitness to teach inquiries are already in place. Under the amended Act teachers will therefore be notified of decisions regarding their registration status, including any decision to remove or suspend registration which impacts on payment of salary. However, as the Teaching Council is not directly involved with teachers' employment or payment, the council would not be in a position to notify teachers of changes to payment in accordance with the amended proposal. For those reasons I do not consider that the amendment is appropriate in section 30.

There is already provision that teachers will be notified if they are not on the register or if they are removed from the register. The implication of that is that they will not be paid. There was an information campaign when that section was brought into place. We cannot force the Teaching Council to tell people they will not be paid because the Teaching Council does not pay them. They are paid from a different source but if there is a need to in some way further communicate, I would be very happy to take up the intention of the amendment. However, I do not believe it is appropriate to put it into the legislation.