Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)

Children now need assistance from professionals who have liaised with universities and other third level institutions. They also, as Deputy Neville stated concisely, deal with children who self-harm, come from broken homes or those in which there is alcoholism or have other difficulties. The one solace for those children is the opportunity to talk to their guidance counsellor at school, the one friendly face they can talk to. If guidance counselling is removed from schools, we can throw our hats at keeping these children in school and out of the prison environment or giving them an opportunity at a decent life and to go on to be model citizens like so many others. I do not expect Government Members to vote with us on the motion because that does not happen but they should get into their huddles tomorrow before approaching their senior Ministers and, in particular, the Minister for Education and Skills, and appeal to him based on what they have seen in the House this evening to overturn this decision or choice. It is all about priorities. They can talk about the country being broken and apportion blame to whom they so wish.

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