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

I agree that people have a loyalty to their local school. Unfortunately, in some cases, students are unable to attend that local school because of section 7(3)(c) of the Equal Status Act. I noted that the Minister indicated in the media this morning that she will remove rule 68 in January. That would be a very welcome move. Obviously, divestment will not address the issue of religious discrimination in schools. I would question why she would remove rule 68 without also addressing section 7(3)(c) of the Equal Status Act. If a student cannot get into a school, that is a big problem, but once a student gets into a school we need to ensure rule 68 is removed, which provides that religion is the most important subject in the curriculum. We are putting the cart before the horse. We need to address both issues at the one time.

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