Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I understand this is a questions and answers session so I will make a couple of comments. There is no doubt this is a difficult time for the school community, including in my county of Donegal. A school community is made up of teachers, teaching assistants, ancillary staff, children and their families. Everyone in that community has one objective and that is to have our children back at school. The welfare of our children is crucial. Tá an aidhm chéanna ag achan duine. Tá an sprioc céanna ag pobal na scoile, is é sin leas na bpáiste a chur chun tosaigh. Tá pobal na scoile i dTír Chonaill ag fulaingt. Tá fearg orthu agus tá pian i measc an phobail sin.

The school community in my constituency is hurting. I regret comments made by the Minister that sought to pit the community against itself. That is no way to serve the school community. It is clear the Government has failed to make the contingencies for reopening schools and in the case of the lockdown after Christmas, what the school community in County Donegal and elsewhere need is a change of approach from Government. What is the Government going to do? What change of steps will the Government take? After the talks collapsed or broke down, its reaction was completely and utterly inappropriate and disappointing and it flamed the fires. What steps did the Minister take yesterday? What steps will she take in the coming days to reopen special education?

What steps has the Minister taken to respond to the real concerns by staff and SNAs, such as the flexibility for high-risk staff, serial testing and the reversal of the 40% cut in the grant for personal protective equipment, PPE, and sanitisation products?

See this speech in context