Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I support the motion which is a sensible motion brought forward by Páirtí an Lucht Oibre, not the nonsense we had earlier of a phony vote of no confidence in the Government that it knew it would not win. It is jockeying for position with Sinn Féin and the other party on the left, the Social Democrats. There were antics, disgruntlement and interruption. It was a shocking debate. This is a reasonable and sensible debate.

We are all worried about the future of education. I have children and grandchildren in all strands of education, from naoíra to third level. Funding will be a problem. There is a lot of waste. I have been involved in many school projects and have been on boards of management. When an ASD unit costs upwards of €1 million there is something wrong. It is too much money. These units are badly needed in many schools.

Coláiste Dún Iascaigh in Cahir is a wonderful school which is expanding rapidly. There are a lot of newcomers. It is a great community which has a great welcome. There is an extensive plan for an ASD unit and other rooms. It is hoped it will not be one of the projects that is being pulled. Projects are being pulled because the Government has added significant cost with the pathetic nonsense of carbon taxes and all the other punitive taxes it has put on builders, building projects, building houses or whatever. Carbon tax is a direct penalty people on who are building. Builders who have contracts are receiving letters telling them to stall. We do not know where we are. This causes angst to voluntary boards of management. Fundraising is done by school communities. We need to treat school communities with respect. We are throwing out the baby with the bathwater. We want a liberal agenda, but we do not talk about the cost of that and the costs that will be associated with that in the decades to come.

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