Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I do not accept the Minister’s answer. The fact that she has taken €28 million from the capital budget means many schools that are ready to go with their building works and whose building works are in progress are being stalled into next year to provide the money. This is not money that the Minister finds, nor was it before the Government came into office. It was normally allocated in advance in the budget so that schools were told they were to get it. It was always in the primary grants calendar because the money was specifically allocated for it in the budget. Only under the Minister and her predecessor has it been the case. They scramble around to see if they can find money from other sources, namely, by stalling school projects. The Minister should not try to tell us that taking €28 million out of the capital budget will have no impact on schools. This is not reality. Capital projects will miss out as a result. Fianna Fáil is the only party that has put money it its pre-budget submission to provide a capital works grant next year. The Minister has not done it, and this time next year she will be scrabbling around to see if she can take it from somewhere else.

10 o’clock

Will there be a summer works scheme next year? Last year, when local elections were held, the then Minister, Deputy Quinn, managed to find €40 million for that scheme from the capital budget. Clearly the Minister cannot find that sum this year, so I take it that there will be no summer works scheme for primary schools in 2015.

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