Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I thought Fine Gael was the champion of small business, but obviously that is not the case. I have a real concern that those sorts of measures can benefit bigger suppliers of goods and services to the education system and to the education training boards at the expense of small and medium-sized businesses.

On the issue of membership of the boards and so on, a number of submissions have suggested that a balance should be provided in terms of staff and parental representation on the boards. In addition there may also be a requirement to have adult learners represented on the boards. I would like to see that done at the expense of politicians. I do not understand why we need so many councillors. I would favour more staff representation, parent representation, community representation and other people who can contribute to have these boards connected into labour issues in the area, the employment prospects in the area and the educational needs of people in the area rather than it being dominated by politicians. Concern has been expressed that the parents' representatives are now to be elected through national parents' organisations rather than directly at school level. I would like to hear the justification for that because it seems to threaten a level of local democracy. The TUI has expressed concerned that section 48 should specifically prevent fees from being charged for the provision of education by the education training boards, with which I agree.

I wish to raise a parochial matter which is somewhat tangential. I have been trying to raise this issue for about three weeks with the Ceann Comhairle. It relates to staff in the VEC, many of whom have worked there for ten, 12 or 15 years and who do not have degrees. Even though they are very skilled at what they do in the VECs, because of the recently passed legislation requiring them to have degrees, they are now faced with the prospect of losing their jobs. The Teaching Council of Ireland will not allow them to join the council because they do not have degrees. They are asking that there would be an amnesty for people who worked for many years in the VECs but are now caught because of the new regulations.

While it is reasonable for those regulations to apply going forward, there should be an amnesty for those who, having worked in the VECs for many years and with whom management has no problem as they are doing their job well, now face possible job loss because of the new regulations requiring that they have degrees in order to become members of the Teaching Council.

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