Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

4 o’clock

The Minister is trying but failing to spin the situation by mixing up architectural planning with construction. He knows that building is different from planning. What was promised in 2014 was not that the schools on that list would go to architectural planning but would go to construction, that is, that building would start. Approximately 26 schools were promised they would go to construction in 2015 but that have not been started yet. It is a nonsense to say they are in architectural planning because the assumption was that they were well planned in 2014 when the Department and the Minister's predecessor announced they would be built commencing in 2015.

The Minister has also muddied the waters in respect of the capital plan from election year 2015 to 2021. That is another project in the realm of fantasy. There has not been a word about several schools such as the Mercy convent in Navan or Ard Rí community national school. What does the Minister have against special schools? Special schools around the country seem to be falling well behind, including St. Mary's and St. Ultan's in Navan, St. Ita's in Drogheda, a school in Enniscorthy and several in Stillorgan in south County Dublin, adjoining the constituency of the Minister of State, Deputy Mitchell O'Connor. They have been left by the wayside. The Minister is mixing up the idea of building which the Government committed to. Does the Minister have enough money to build the projects the Department has already committed to building?

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