Deputy James Lawless:

We have led the way on every major expansion of education in Ireland. From the driving transformative ambition of Patrick Hillery to the unprecedented step change of free secondary school education under Donogh O'Malley and the innovation of the Taoiseach, Deputy Micheál Martin, in establishing a dedicated Department of further and higher education in the first place, we have relentlessly and consistently pushed out the frontier. I am proud to be in the privileged position of serving in office to push out on that work and to build on that heritage with our colleagues in Government, Fine Gael and the Independents.

The story of our country over the past several decades is a remarkable tale of economic transformation and social mobility. It is a history that is inextricably bound up with the expansion of our education system. We went from a primitive agrarian economy to an advanced industrial knowledge economy in the space of a few decades. We did that through sustained investment in education and innovation, and we will continue to do that on my watch and throughout this Government's term. The virtuous cycle of education and economic growth creates the resources we need to invest in our social systems and infrastructure, improving quality of life and opportunities for all citizens. That investment and enhancement create the resources that support the public good and everything else that we do. This narrative of a failed state we sometimes hear from the Opposition sees education as just another football to be kicked around.

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