Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)

I believe the figure of €120 million is an estimate based on multiplying the number of pupils in each school by the demonstrated fees. I understand that some schools have a mechanism for not charging fees, if the economic circumstances in a particular family deteriorate, to enable the child to finish school. One should recall that all secondary schools charged fees until the period between 1966 and 1968, when Donogh O'Malley's scheme was being introduced. The schools chose voluntarily to participate in a scheme whereby in return for not charging fees, they received a block grant from the State. Out of 730 post-primary schools, 55 schools chose not to participate in the free voluntary scheme, of which 33 were of Catholic ethos, while the remainder predominantly were Protestant and they chose to remain outside the scheme for different reasons. We asked for this detailed information because there is a wide discrepancy in the economic cohort of pupils in the different schools, particularly in the Protestant fee-paying schools. When we get that information, we will be in a better place to see how we can provide additional help to some schools as opposed to others.

Near the Deputy's own constituency, the Protestant Wilson's Hospital School caters for a large number of pupils from across the country as well as from the hinterland between Longford and Westmeath. That school has managed to separate the operation of the educational school component of their activities and have opted to join the free scheme from that point of view. They have a separate set of accounts for the residential and boarding component of the school and for the educational side of it. That may be a model that can be adapted for some schools that I know are having difficulty at the moment.

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