Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Further to Deputy Byrne's question, Ms Rainsberry said, as everybody knows, that almost every Protestant primary and secondary school includes children of other faiths and that a huge amount of effort goes into doing that. For instance, Dublin 15 is a hotbed for people coming from different countries throughout the world. The local Church of Ireland primary school is a very popular, as are most Church of Ireland schools. While I do not know the exact numbers, it has a level of diversity, but it has always been oversubscribed. During the time when Mr. Ruairí Quinn was Minister for Education and Skills, a second Church of Ireland school was established in Dunboyne for the wider Dunboyne catchment area.

Nobody has ever suggested that catchment areas would be based on dioceses if that was an inadequate geographical area given the spread of the schools. However, I have a complementary question. Would Ms Rainsberry accept it is good to have a degree of diversity in the school if that can be accommodated? It is good for the Protestant children and it is obviously good for local community relations. We need a balance between the school having the right to have a sufficient number of children to reflect its ethos while not at the same time excluding other children who may live relatively close to the school and would therefore find the school an attractive option in the local context. The Constitution reflects the right of religious freedom and expression; there is also a reflection of a right of a child not to be discriminated against. We are trying to balance a number of different things that are set out as objectives and ideals in the Constitution.