Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

I move amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following:

commends the Government on putting 10,000 more teachers in place;

supports the priority given in recent years to providing vastly improved services for children with special needs and those from disadvantaged areas;

notes that as a result approximately 50,000 children from disadvantaged areas are already in much smaller classes;

further notes the major increases in staffing supports for children with special needs, the improvements in the process for accessing such supports and the Government's commitment to the full implementation of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004;

welcomes the fact that last year there were 80,000 fewer primary school children in classes of 30 or more than in 1997;

appreciates that another 800 primary teachers will be put in place next September, with the focus on reducing class sizes;

commends the fact that there is now one teacher for every 13 students at second level;

further commends the Government on the unprecedented level of investment in school buildings in recent years and the improvements that have been made in school planning; and

welcomes the provision of €4.5 billion for the school building and modernisation programme under the National Development Plan 2007-2013.

The priority the Government has given to education is unparalleled. In 1997, we took over from an Administration in which the current leaders of the two main Opposition parties had voted to freeze direct school funding and cut teacher numbers. Investment in school buildings was minimal and provision for children with special needs in mainstream schools was virtually non-existent. We set out to return education to the centre of Government policy, to increase investment and to improve outcomes, and we have succeeded in those aims. A total of 10,000 extra teachers have been put in place. Primary class sizes have been reduced to their lowest level ever. Supports for children from disadvantaged areas and those with special needs have been dramatically improved. Under the largest school building programme in Irish history, thousands of existing schools have been modernised, while many more new ones have been built.

We are rightly proud of the significant increase in resources for education that has been put in place in a relatively short time, but it is the improvement in outcomes that matters most to us. More young people than ever are finishing school. With the creation of 45,000 extra college places and the success of targeted access initiatives, real breakthroughs have been made in the participation of students from disadvantaged areas in third level education. At the same time, we have laid the foundations for a vibrant fourth level sector as the key to attracting even greater investment to Ireland. We are fully aware of the many needs which have still to be addressed, but we are proud we have provided for the most sustained increase in funding and participation in the history of Irish education.

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