Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE) | Oireachtas source

The Catholic bishops have, this week, finally agreed to hand over patronage of eight schools so that they can become secular schools. This is after a decade of talk following the forum on patronage in 2012. At this rate it will take 3,000 years to finally have a secular primary school system in this country. Even more alarming are the reports today that the church may be doing with these schools exactly what Deputy Boyd Barrett explained in respect of the national maternity hospital, that is, hanging on to ownership of the schools and expecting the State to pay it rent every year for the use of the schools. Will the Taoiseach clarify whether the schools are being fully transferred into public ownership or will they be leased from them? When will the full details of the deal be published? We stand for fully secular, fully public education and healthcare. They should be taken fully out of the control of the church and into the hands of the State, democratically controlled by staff, parents and the communities they serve.

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