Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Even in very difficult financial times - Deputy McConalogue knows the reasons for that - the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Burton, provided additional money for the school meals programme because she considers it to be very important, as do I. In 2013 and 2014 all DEIS schools not participating in the school meals programme were invited in writing by the Department of Social Protection to participate in the scheme. Some of the schools decided not to access the programme for a variety of reasons, including the lack of an identified need for it. I suspect that might be the case in some of the rural schools. They simply decided they did not need the school meals programme, and it is a matter for the schools to make that decision.

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