Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

By any objective measure we have made positive developments in education policy over the last couple of years at primary level through successive reductions in the pupil-teacher ratio, the single largest expansion of DEIS places in the history of the State and now an increase in the back-to-school allowance. We now have over 19,000 special needs assistants, SNAs, thank God, and it is the right thing to do. Almost 1,000 extra special education teachers have now been funded and will be appointed for the coming school year. We need to try to meet all the needs that exist across the board and that is before we talk about housing, on which we have just had a long exchange-----

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