Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)

I thank the Taoiseach for his response. If he has made a commitment on the school entry age, I welcome it. It is all very well for the Taoiseach to say what he said but the reality is that 227 SNAs have gone out of the system. Why are hundreds of people at the gates today protesting about cuts to services for children with special needs?

I would like to ask the Taoiseach a couple of questions on his views on education. I ask him to change the mindset of the Government on education. Does he regard education as a cost or an investment? He should ascertain whether the governments of countries such as Finland have targeted children with special needs or the weak or poor children during their similar economic problems. We spend €9 billion on educational services, yet we cannot find a couple of euro to protect the weakest and front line services.

Does the Taoiseach agree it is economic madness to slash the education budget while at the same time handing over €100 million to private schools? Where does the Government stand on the Tánaiste's strong concern over the two-tier education system, on which he commented before the general election? One private school in Dublin charges a fee of €5,160, gets €2.1 million from the taxpayer and employs an extra 12 teachers. If the Taoiseach slashed 50% of the funding for such wealthy schools, he could pay for all the SNAs and resource teachers required for children with special needs.

I ask the Taoiseach to make a really tough decision to support our educational services, particularly for those with priority needs.

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