Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will speak about the education section of the programme for Government and particularly educational buildings and facilities. I had a look at the previous programme for Government from which this one has virtually been cut and pasted. I will reference two schools in my constituency. One is Coolmine Community School. Recently I visited it when it was raining and had to dodge the buckets catching the rain. There were nine buckets in the main hall as we walked through the building. There are leaks in classrooms where children are moved from one side of the classroom to the other. There is mould on the walls. The children were wearing their jackets in the classrooms because the Portakabins are so old that they are freezing. The school was built in 1974. It has made an emergency application for the roof, which was repaired in 2016 but has failed, primarily because it is such an old building that it needs to be completely replaced. I have written to the Minister to ask her to have a look at this urgently for the school. It was built in 1974 and needs to be replaced. It is entirely inappropriate for children in this day and age to be educated in a school such as this.

The other school campus I want to mention is on the Navan Road and includes St. John Bosco junior and senior boys' national schools and Mary, Help of Christians girls' national school. They are due for replacement. A lot of work has been done by the schools. While I was visiting one of the schools just before the election, as we sat there the electricity went off in all three schools. This is something that happens on a regular basis. They have been continually asked to add on to the schools, including adding on special classes. Unfortunately the capacity of the electricity system is not able to take it. They have applied for planning permission but there is a hold-up. The programme for Government speaks about educational facilities and how children should be educated in first-class and world-class facilities. It is time for this to be done. As I have said, I have looked at the previous programme for Government and this programme for Government and both say the same things. I hope I am not here in five years' time with the same story.

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