Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)

I am very conscious that the cost of textbooks is a considerable burden on families. I have met with members of the Irish Educational Publishers' Association and impressed on them the need to limit the cost of textbooks and to avoid placing schools and families in a position where textbooks are altered unnecessarily. The association agreed a voluntary code of practice among their members, which commits them to limiting the publication of new editions and to maintaining editions in print unchanged for at least six years. The publishers also gave assurances that they will sell textbooks to schools at substantial discounts so schools can purchase in bulk to stock textbook rental schemes.

If the Deputy has information that suggests that publishers are not abiding by the code, I invite him to provide me with it and I will take it up with the Irish Educational Publishers' Association.

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