Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I hear what the Minister is saying; that she is committed to these projects, and I take her at face value on that. The big question, however, is: when is she committed to delivering them? A total of 58 schools have a pause. They have received the letters and emails and there is shock in the communities. The Taoiseach stood in the seat across from me on Tuesday and gave a reassurance that "funding will be provided for those 58 schools to continue construction this year." Does one end of government know what the other end of government is doing? Why can the Minister for Education not echo those words? Will these 58 schools, as the Taoiseach said, "continue construction this year"? Gaelscoil na gCeithre Máistrí is ready to roll and if the decision is not made in the next 24 hours, there will be significant delay because of the tender process and the contract that has been awarded. Can the Minister give any reassurances to that school in particular that a decision will be made in the next 24 hours? Crucially, will she echo the words of the Taoiseach that all 58 schools will go to construction this year? If not, was the Taoiseach talking through his hat?

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