Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We have developed our schools, as the Deputy knows, according to a patronage model whereby patrons provide the land and the Department builds the school, often with some support from the patron, often without. The Department has a lien on the property in which we invest and the patron has an obligation to ensure that the school continues to operate and to meet needs. However, the owner of the land, in this case the Christian Brothers, has a right under the Constitution to dispose of the land. The Christian Brothers have done so and have entered a binding contract-----

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