Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

While the concentration is on a reduction in numbers, I wish to put on record that part of the increase in numbers over that decade was due to the provision of additional resource teachers and special needs assistants in schools. This represented the biggest single increase in staff numbers and that cannot be ignored. I hope the Minister of State does not suggest the numbers that were increased over those years should be in some way reversed because that would be a retrograde step.

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