Joe Callanan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)

There was huge disappointment following the announcement last week that Seamount College, Kinvara was to close and there was to be no intake of first year students in September 2007. The college is owned and run by the Sisters of Mercy. I pay tribute to the principal, Ms Mulkerrins, and all the staff for the great school it has become, with the achievement of excellent results every year and nobody having failed the junior or leaving certificate last year.

There are 243 students in Seamount College and the area around it has seen a huge increase in population. The other colleges in south Galway, namely in Gort and Oranmore, are full. Therefore, there is a great need for this secondary school to be kept open in Kinvara.

I ask the Minister of State to use her influence with the Sisters of Mercy to allow first year students to enter Seamount College in September 2007. This would give parents and other members of the community in Kinvara breathing space to work out the best way forward to provide for education needs in the Kinvara area. It would also allow the excellent committee set up last Friday night from an attendance at a public meeting of more than 400 people to negotiate with the Sisters of Mercy and the Department of Education and Science to put in place plans for the future of Seamount College. I urge the Minister of State to find a way to provide this necessary period of time in this regard.

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