John Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)

Dubai and other such countries offer big salaries to Irish teachers who go there to work. That would be a pity. Graduate teachers are highly talented and skilled. In the past month five young teachers came to see me to find out whether they could get part-time work in schools in the county or even within the country. A number of years ago schools found it difficult to find qualified teachers at short notice but that is no longer the case.

Section 30 is mainly concerned with ensuring schools only employ teachers who are qualified and registered in accordance with the standards set by the Teaching Council. The section has never been implemented and there has therefore never been a statutory obligation to employ registered teachers.

There are some positives in the Bill. The section which will allow the Teaching Council to make a renewal of registration conditional on a number of factors including continuing professional development is important for improving the standards of the profession. Section 24(5) of the 1998 Act, as inserted by section 6 of the Bill, introduces the redeployment of teachers into primary legislation for the first time. It states that statutory underpinning of an effective redeployment scheme will help ensure that surplus positions are absorbed in the schools sector leading to cost savings. Redeployment will take place in cases where a school is over quota, as outlined in the Croke Park agreement, and also in the case of school closures as agreed in the social partnership agreement terms 2016. Under the Bill, when a teacher is redeployed it means he or she will become an employee of the board of the school to which he or she is sent. Teachers may also be redeployed to a school with a different ethos.

The previous and current Ministers have put much thought and effort into producing the Bill. Based on the representations made to me, the one area that is of concern is the exclusion of the need for agreement on procedures. Perhaps the Minister would explain the reduction in the number of teachers that will take place in schools because of the changes made to the pupil-teacher ratio and in DEIS schools.

What will happen to those teachers? There is a major concern within the profession and among parents.

As the Minister is aware, many public meetings have been held around the country. We have been summoned to one next week in County Wexford to explain the situation and to get a lashing for the Minister's decisions. To highlight the situation, all of the county's Oireachtas Members have been invited to a meeting in Bree where between 300 and 400 people, from teachers to parents, are expected to attend. I am sure that they will also bring some students.

The concern is that small school areas will be particularly affected. Wexford does not have as many small schools as other parts of the country but people are concerned that the number we have will lose some of their teachers and be unable to provide the standard of education required by parents and students. The Minister has made a few changes but he should reflect further on the road he is taking in respect of small schools, particularly given the seriousness of the situation that is developing in rural areas. It will affect the future education of children.

At a time when the rate of unemployment is so high it is important that we provide people with the best education. We must encourage young people to attain a high level of primary, secondary and third level education. In my day, someone with a leaving certificate could walk into just about any job. Now, one needs a masters degree to get many of the jobs that are vacant. People who do not have the necessary qualifications or levels of education have few opportunities.

The Minister and his colleague, the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Burton, share responsibility for what was the old FÁS. My county was dependent on the building industry and its high payment levels prompted a significant number of young people to leave school at 15 or 16 years of age.

See this speech in context