Pádraic McCormack (Galway West, Fine Gael)

This Fine Gael Private Members' motion concerns and wishes to highlight the cruel Government cutbacks and withdrawal of 128 classes for children with mild general handicapped disabilities. It calls on the Government to reverse its decision to suppress the 128 special classes for the children affected, a number of which are located in the Galway area, including some in my parish of Renmore. Why was such a cruel and backward step taken by the Government when one considers the comparatively minimal savings involved?

Parents cannot understand and will not accept that this cruel blow to the most vulnerable has been implemented by an uncaring Government that has wasted and squandered millions of taxpayers' money on itself and on crazy projects in recent years. I refer to the Bertie bowl, which was never built but which cost hundreds of millions, the purchase of useless electronic voting machines that cost €50 million and which now have been scrapped and several other crazy projects at which the Government threw money like snuff at a wake. I also refer to the tax incentive schemes to the Government's friends in the construction business and the necessary bailing out of the banks. Now the Government has brought the country and its finances to the sorry state in which it finds itself, the first people it attacks are from the most vulnerable sector of our society, in an effort to save a miserable amount of money through front-line cut-backs in health and educational services to the disadvantaged.

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