Declan Breathnach (Louth, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome that a meeting is to take place. I spent 35 years teaching, 25 of them in a rural community. Anybody who lives in a rural community such as Faughart, of which there are many, will know the school is the focal point not just for teaching but for the community. Archbishop Eamon Martin outlined to the parents' association that he has no difficulty in principle with the proposal. His letter clearly delineates what his issues are with it. While we all understand the need for due process, people have moved their children. The school enrolment was down to 64 from 100 before the problems started. If the school does not reopen in September there is a danger that people will not bring their children back there because they will obviously settle in other schools. Based on the contents of the archbishop's letter, I urge that his issues be clearly resolved to ensure they are not batted from one side to the other in letters. A commitment was given to reopen the school under alternative patronage once the problem with the school was resolved by closure.

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