James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for referencing the first project she mentioned, that of the school complex in Carrigtwohill. I have engaged with the parents' association there a great deal. As the Minister knows, this has been an arduous and long process, one that has been plagued by numerous issues for many years. Is there an update further to what the Minister outlined to me previously? Will she be in a position to travel to the Cork East constituency in the near future to discuss this matter with representatives of the school, the principal, the board of management and the parents' association?

That move would be greatly appreciated. It is needed. From my perspective as a local Deputy, I would be absolutely indebted to the Minister if she was able to fulfil such a commitment.

In terms of the Educate Together patronage, I am glad to hear the Minister referenced it because there is a lot of work going on in the Educate Together group in Midleton on the possibility of establishing an additional secondary school for which there is demand. Demand is why we are in this situation. Quite frankly, there are too few school places available in east Cork. As a Government we have to bite the bullet, acknowledge the problem and put coherent steps in place to try to deal with it over the next number of years.

Parents, students and teachers accept that this will not be fixed overnight but we have to be able to say to them that we have a plan. I am glad that the Minister has outlined multiple different school projects throughout east Cork, including Midleton, Youghal and Carrigtwohill, but we need to show a degree of ambition in addition to what the Minister outlined and accept that we need an additional school. We also need to ensure that the staff, teachers and current and future pupils in Carrigtwohill Community College and the primary schools that will come along with that development make sure that the Department of Education brings the project to fruition after the wait they have had. It has been a horrendously difficult experience for many people in the community. As a Deputy representing the area, I will be very grateful if that could be given urgent attention by the Department.

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