Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I am fully in favour of Deputy Shortall's proposal. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has raised the issue for the Minister’s attention that section 30(2)(e) of the Education Act 1998 provides that the Minister “shall not require any student to attend instruction in any subject which is contrary to the conscience of the parent of the student”.

My amendments Nos. 56 and 84 deal with the opt-out for students who do not wish to attend religious instruction. Many schools with a religious ethos do not have alternatives for children. We have scenarios where children will not attend school when communion and confirmation are being prepared for. There are students in secondary school who were told to sit at the back of the class, given a study class or are told to go to the library when religious instruction takes place. There are no guidelines in place, however, for the schools or students. These two amendments would require the Minister to provide definite clarity and guidelines to schools on how they should put in place alternatives for children who do not wish to attend religious instruction and require a timeline for same.