Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

At this stage most questions have been asked and answered but I have a number of quick queries. I will probably not need the full ten minutes. School transport has been spoken about and I apologise if my question has already been answered. Every year we have an issue in the constituency of Carlow-Kilkenny with people not being able to get school transport. We also have an issue with the lack of secondary school places, particularly for boys in Kilkenny city. As a result, this year many parents did not secure a secondary school place in the city for their sons and must now try to get a school outside of the city. At this stage, some of the rural schools have also filled up. Given that people normally need to have their request for school transport in by the end of April, is it the understanding of the witnesses that this has been extended? Do they have any advice for parents in this situation who cannot access school places in the vicinity? As the witnesses know, these parents are also told that as they are sending their child to a school outside of the catchment area they do not automatically get the Bus Éireann transport, although they might be entitled to other private bus operators. Given that the timeframe has well lapsed at this stage, has it been extended or is there wriggle room for parents in this situation?