Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

First, I believe that the school principal still holds the position of very high respect and regard in our society. I do not believe that has changed. School principals are still very much leaders of our communities. It is also the case that teachers hold the position of high respect and high regard in our communities. I do not believe that has changed. Compared to other countries, Ireland has a very good and well performing education system and education service. This is in no small part due to the quality of our teachers, now and in the past.

Since the change of Government, since Deputy Martin's party left office and my party got the privilege to lead the Government, we have had 8,900 more teachers working in our school than we had then. There has been a significant increase in the numbers of teachers working in our schools. This has escalated particularly in the last two years. There are 5,000 more teachers than two years ago working in our schools and teaching our children. This is evidence of the Government's commitment to education. When considered in cash terms, the education budget for 2018 is €10 billion. This is the first time the education budget has exceeded €10 billion. This demonstrates our commitment. I believe that the people who are going in to teacher training are among the brightest and the best. I do not agree with Deputy Martin's comments that the people going in to teacher training are not among the brightest and the best. I disagree with that. I think people who are-----

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