Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 11:

In page 6, line 4, after "concerned" to insert the following:"except where the admission policy states that it is the school's explicit policy to give preference to children from the Traveller community in admissions".

I will not delay matters too long. The amendments in different circumstances allow the Minister to require schools either individually or collectively to apply positive discrimination in the admissions policies for groups that have specific difficulty in finding a school place. The two groups we have identified in these amendments, and there may be others, are children from Traveller families and children from homeless households. If I feel there is support for it, I will pursue it. If not, I will withdraw the amendments.

Amendment No. 83 is grouped with amendments Nos. 11 and 12. Amendment No. 83 involves our catchment area proposals. In respect of what I am going to do with regard to catchment areas, I have had no time to examine the Minister's proposal on the so-called baptism barrier in any detail. I am prepared for the time being to not proceed with my catchment area proposal in this legislation until we study the Minister's proposal fully. I should very clearly say that the catchment area proposal is Fianna Fáil's preferred approach and we are not entirely convinced of the Minister's reasons for not doing it but I am willing to look at what the Minister is proposing and to examine it. I think it will require the committee to examine it with stakeholders as well because it is not a proposal that has received examination so far. The fact that I am not pursuing my catchment area proposals today does not mean that they are not Fianna Fáil policy. It certainly is Fianna Fáil policy and one we want to pursue.