Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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Is it possible, with the permission of the archdiocese, to get a copy of the letter from the De La Salle Order for our information? I am referring to the letter stating that it was no longer in a position to be a trustee. Can the deputation provide that to the committee? I understand the letter that went out yesterday to parents of pupils in the De La Salle school states clearly that the campus will no longer be used as a primary school. However, the letter does not state that the order is no longer in a position to be a trustee. For the purpose of clarification, can the committee get a copy of the letter for our records?

The question the Senator asked is really the question that all of us are asking, which is why there such a reluctance on behalf of the bishop to meet the De La Salle Order and discuss the possibility of amalgamating in that campus.

We are discussing education, because that is the role of the Joint Committee on Education and Social Protection, but there is also the matter of public funds. Why should the taxpayer be asked to pay for a new school hall or the ancillary services that will of necessity be provided if the amalgamation goes ahead on the Dominican campus, when all of those facilities are already in place elsewhere? There is an issue around expenditure of public finances as well. We have a responsibility as legislators to ensure that any public money is spent wisely. It is a role for a different committee, but certainly I would raise questions with the Department of Education and Skills if it were to grant this amalgamation. It would have to grant it on the basis that it was providing a given amount of money. I believe we should at least consider the feasibility of providing that money to upgrade the De La Salle campus and invest in that campus because it is a bigger campus and it has the potential for expansion in future years. Those involved are confining themselves by amalgamating in the Dominican campus. They are restricting the possibility of expanding in future years. It does not make any sense. I have heard no rationale at the committee today for the amalgamation on a smaller site with fewer facilities. I have not heard anyone explain the rationale or merits behind it. This is not unique to this deputation. The Edmund Rice Schools Trust, which was before the committee last week, proposed something similar in Cork, that is, the amalgamation of a school with a bigger campus with sports facilities and physical education halls to a campus which does not even have a schoolyard.