Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)

When is a school place not a school place? When it is a sanctioned school place. The verbal gymnastics the Government has been engaging in have been going on for a while, not just under the Minister of State's watch but under that of his predecessor. We have been asking for a long time for a figure in respect of the number of children who still do not have places. Now we want the figure for the number who were told they had school places but who do not have school places. I do not have time in my very brief slot here, but the children of the parents involved in Equality in Education and FUSS, who are campaigning and some of whom are in the Gallery, were awarded places but are not starting school. I will quickly read out the names of a few schools, namely Belmayne, St. Mochta's, Libermann, Corpus Christi, Lucan special school, Whitechurch school, St. Mary's boys' school, Finglas parochial, Holy Spirit boys' school in Ballymun, Killeshin in Laois, Holy Rosary Firhouse, St. Canice's boys' school, and Bayside. I want to add Danu special school, which the Minister of State has heard me harping on about an awful lot. Imagine that, for the second year in a row, there are children not going to school. Why did the Minister of State tell them they would have a building when they do not? There was no way there was going to be a building. They do not have a building for the second year in a row. The Minister of State visited months ago. The building is still not there. What a way to treat people.

Although I am running out of time, I want to mention school transport. The child of a woman in Tyrrelstown in my area was rejected by 21 schools but got a place in Dunboyne. There is absolutely no way to get from Tyrrelstown to Dunboyne. She was told that there was no school transport for her child. Another child was awarded a place in Baggot Street at the school for dyslexia. That child has no school transport either. Why are people not being given access to school transport?

Why was an autism conference for the whole of Europe that was held in Ireland and that was hosted by AsIAm opened by Deputy Norma Foley, who could not provide school places when she was Minister for Education and who is now Minister for children? It really was an insult for an awful lot of parents - they relayed this to me - that somebody who is causing problems for people with autism would open a conference on autism. The fee for an ordinary parent or family to attend that conference was €255. That was absolutely disgraceful.

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