Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)

The next few questions are from myself. Like others, I was a teacher for many years and worked for a period as an SNA prior to that. I place huge value on it. Indeed, my classroom could not have functioned for those 16 years but for the times I had an SNA in the room helping children to be part of the class, to be part of the curriculum, and to go home happy.

My first question is to the Fórsa representatives. Is there is an embargo on SNA recruitment? I ask this because like many TDs I had to battle over the summer to get an SNA appointed to a school. I was told by the NCSE that there was an embargo. I said that I had heard of an embargo in the HSE but not heard of an embargo with the appointment of SNAs. They said to get on to managers up along the chain. I did all of that and I raised it with all levels of management. Eventually I got on to the Minister and no one said there was an embargo. Would Fórsa say there is an embargo in name or in practice at the moment?