Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)

I thank all colleagues who contributed to the debate. It is disgraceful that the Green Party sent none of its Deputies to contribute during the proceedings last night or today. Deputy Sargent, in particular, stated two months ago that his stomach was turned by this decision and he has been putting it about in schools in north Dublin that he could not get time to contribute to the debate. He did not have the courage of his convictions to put on the record his views on this issue. We will see which way the Minister of State and his colleagues vote shortly.

I agree with Deputy Finian McGrath that this decision is a direct attack on the most vulnerable children in our school system. The Government parties will abolish 128 classes in 119 schools on 1 September and the decision will affect 534 children. This is not about whether a mainstream class or a special class is better, the UN convention or about a declaration in Malaga. The issue is the Government's decision to suppress 128 classes. If the notion is that there cannot be a special class in a mainstream school on the basis that every pupil should be mainstreamed, will the Government abolish all special schools? Is that the next logical step to take if it pursues its argument further?

The Government's main argument is that the general allocation model was introduced in 2005 but the figures are out of date because the model was based on figures at that time. It is not based on current figures and many schools have experienced an increase in enrolments. The Minister's statement that there are no children in all these classes is absolute hogwash. In many of those schools, come next September, there will be a quota of children for one or two classes based on the 1999 figures of between nine and 11. It is wrong for the Government to suggest that in suppressing those classes the resource will be available for those children. It will not. The Minister said yesterday that those pupils would be provided with additional teaching supports through the general allocation model. Exactly what teaching supports is he offering? That is what we want to hear.

I asked the Minister a straight question last night, to which I thought his junior Minister would reply today, about how many of the 128 classes he had visited. How many of the teachers, parents or children had he met? Not one. He has not been to one of the 128 classes, yet at the stroke of a pen he can abolish them. If it was wrong to keep those classes in 1999 why did no previous Minister abolish them between 1999 and now? Perhaps they had the cop-on to realise that it would have been an attack on vulnerable children. There is no credibility in the Minister who, at the stroke of a pen, could decide that he would play God for those approximately 500 children when he had not been to the schools, nor met the parents or teachers.

The Minister is on dodgy legal ground. Section 2 of the EPSEN Act outlines an approach based on inclusion – something we all support – but sections 2(a) and (b) refer to:

(a) the best interests of the child as determined in accordance with any assessment carried out under this Act, or

(b) the effective provision of education for children with whom the child is to be educated.

The Minister is wide open to a legal challenge from any of the parents involved. We all know the record of the Department of Education and Science when it comes to dragging people through the courts and defending its own action. The decision is wide open to a legal challenge because the Minister is, in effect, taking away from children an existing service that they are to get in a mainstream class. Last Friday I was in my constituency with my party leader, Deputy Kenny. We saw two great classes, wonderful children and wonderful teaching. Where previously those children were in a class with a pupil-teacher ratio of 6:1 or 7:1, they will now have to make do in a class of 25 yet we are told everything is going to be hunky dory and work for those children.

What planet is the Minister living on when he comes to the House to lecture us about UN conventions? I suspect the Minister and his colleagues who have spoken on the subject today do not have a clue what they are talking about. The Minister is tearing down one of the key aspects of special needs provision in mainstream schools. Those are classes that work and the Minister is telling the children their future will be bleak because of the Government's decision. Shame on the Government Members who made such spurious arguments in the House today and shame on them for voting down this motion.

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