Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I completely agree with Deputy Wallace on everything he has said. The school admissions Bill is a missed opportunity. The Minister stated in her response that she sees no good reason that the level should be kept at 25% and she has expressed a personal opinion of a level of 10%. However, I have heard no good reason from the Minister as to why she has set the figure at 10%. The only good reason I have heard is from the report done by the education committee which said it should be zero, and that there should be no places set aside for children of past pupils. Such a policy discriminates against people. The sibling rule is in place which means that a child whose sibling is attending a school has an automatic right to attend that school. We have a changing dynamic in Irish society. I refer to people who are moving to find work and migrants who are coming into the country; I refer to the Traveller community and people in foster care who are being moved to new communities. Whether we like it or not, these people are being discriminated against.

On the question of the ethos of a school, in no modern society should any school have any capacity to discriminate against a child based on his or her sexual orientation. I do not think a gay child will damage the ethos of a Catholic school.

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