Dr. David Doyle:

With regard to the least discriminatory practices, understandably, gender and geography come in to play in feeder schools. That has been well documented. What is problematic about this provision, however, is that it is virtually impossible for certain minority groups to meet the criteria. My argument is that any criterion that is virtually impossible to meet is fundamentally discriminatory and should be removed. If everybody has an equal opportunity of gaining a place in a lottery, at least it is fair. Somebody will obviously fall the wrong side of it, but a submission to this committee in 2019 stated that 57% of boys from the Traveller community have not completed primary school or entered secondary school. Even in ten years' time, the effect of that will still be palpable.