Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)

Will the Minister consider making physical education compulsory at both primary and post-primary level rather than just recommend it? Has she concerns regarding the training of teachers, given that full-time physical education teachers are not employed at primary level? Has she read the report of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Education and Science which recommends full-time physical education teachers, even on a clustering basis, at primary level? Has she given thought to providing a dedicated period of investment in sporting facilities in primary schools, as was done for information technology in the past?

Does the Minister share my concern that schools should not be dependent on sports organisations which promote their own sports? The curriculum is broader than that but a number of schools are reliant on sports organisations because of the lack of provision of facilities by the Department.

See this speech in context