Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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Go raibh míle maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle, as ucht cead a thabhairt dom an cheist thábhachtach seo a ardú. Tá brón orm nach bhfuil an tAire i láthair, ach cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit, ar a laghad. This issue is one which will be repeated to the Minister of State by many living in my constituency of Dublin North and the wider area, including east Meath and many other areas regarded as being in the commuter belt for Dublin, which stretches far. When we met the Minister, Deputy Hanafin, on 20 July and signed an agreement between Fingal County Council and the Department of Education and Science, I thought we would see renewed vigour and delivery of results in the burgeoning towns and villages of my constituency.

I note with interest Deputy O'Shea's case, with which I agree wholeheartedly, on the need to upgrade Waterford Institute of Technology to university status. However, in Dublin North, the town of Swords has a population roughly equal to Waterford city. The people of the area seek decent secondary and primary school places. If we were to get university status for an institute of technology, we would not know what hit us we would be so delighted.

Can we deal with the basics and get them right? There is a real crisis in Dublin North and the wider area. In spite of the United Nations Charter on the Rights of the Child stating at Article 59 that governments should ensure budgetary allocations are also directed at improving and upgrading school buildings, recreational equipment and facilities, and sanitary conditions in schools, the UN Charter is sadly neglected in Dublin North. In Laytown, just north of the Meath border, the population in the school catchment area has quadrupled since 1996, as it has in my constituency, but no permanent classroom has been provided since 1979. Some 150 junior infants from Laytown are bused to Bellewstown.

The Minister of State will know of that issue from the media but similar issues exist in Dublin North. For example, the Balbriggan Educate Together national school accommodates many students from different social backgrounds. However, the poorer parents are discriminated against by Government policy because there is a requirement to pay 25% of the school's rent on the temporary buildings in that school. Therefore, €3,275 per annum must be raised by the school families and the children themselves, and that amount of money is not available to go towards necessary equipment and the maintenance of the school.

The Minister must take account of the needs of Balbriggan Educate Together national school. The school inspector published a report in April this year indicating its viability and the enrolments up to 2010 also indicate strong viability and, indeed, chronic overcrowding for the future. Despite this, the Government will not give the school the permanent status it needs. As a result, it is not able to get a minor works grant, which is only available for a permanent school, or have the rent paid on the six-room school. Therefore, not alone does the school have only a temporary building, which is very unsatisfactory, but it must pay through the nose, as if it was some kind of private operation instead of providing the most basic fundamental human right, namely, that children can expect primary education. Moreover, the school has no resource room.

When I see the reality, I have to believe there is no joined-up thinking in Government. I ask that it be addressed immediately. The school has been coming under pressure to expand to a 32-room facility. Why would the school take the Department on trust that this would not be an albatross around its neck, being left to try to provide when the Department is so slow in providing the basics for a smaller school? That could be a six-room or a 16-teacher school, as it was originally intended to be.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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The Deputy's time is concluded.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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I ask for the Department to prove itself with action. The gaelscoil in Balbriggan is another of many schools which have 200 children on the waiting list and is looking for a permanent site. The school is not confident the Department will deliver. It is a similar case for the Loreto schools in Balbriggan and Swords, Skerries Community College, Balbriggan Community College——

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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I ask the Deputy to give way, it is unfair to other Deputies to go way over the time.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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——Coláiste Colm, St. Finian's, Fingal Community College, Scoil Íosa, Portmarnock Community School and all the national schools. They are all in the same situation.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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Deputy.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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They are not being served by this Government.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I assure the Deputy that the Government is acutely aware that the Fingal area of Dublin is the fastest-growing area in the country and that the Minister for Education and Science is working hard to ensure that extra school places are provided in line with or ahead of demand.

New schools are being built while the capacity of existing schools is being increased. All building projects in areas of rapid population growth are awarded a band 1 priority rating under the Department's prioritisation criteria for large scale building projects. This means they will be delivered in the fastest timeframe possible.

With regard to the 2006 to 2007 school year, a number of measures were implemented to ensure that significant extra classroom accommodation would be available at schools in Fingal to cater for demand. A total of 62 extra classrooms were approved and the majority of these were in place on 1 September 2006.

With regard to the provision of whole new schools, the Deputy will be aware that a major construction programme is under way in the Fingal area. A new school building has recently been completed at Mary Mother of Hope national school in the Littlepace Castaheany area, with an additional project under way. The delivery date for this project is September 2007. A new primary school campus is planned for a school site in Ongar. This campus will permanently accommodate Castaheany Educate Together national school and St. Benedict Ongar national school.

Other developments in the Dublin 15 area include the planned expansion of St. Brigid's national school in Castleknock and extensions to St. Brigid's boys' and girls' national schools in Blanchardstown. At post-primary level, a new 1,000-pupil post-primary school is being provided in the Phibblestown area of Dublin 15. It is intended that this site will also be developed to cater for a 16-classroom primary school. The provision of a further post-primary school in the area is currently under consideration.

New schools will also be provided in the Hansfield and Adamstown strategic development zones. Further north in the Fingal area, closer to the Deputy, a new 1,000-pupil post-primary school is being provided to cater for the needs of Portrane and Donabate. The school will be a community college under the aegis of the vocational education committee. The Minister is acutely aware of the needs of the Portrane and Donabate area and is determined to progress this as quickly as possible.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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Is there a date?

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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It will be as quickly as possible.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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That has been said for years.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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The Deputy already went over time. He should listen to the reply.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I have quite a long speech that I will not get to the end of. Balbriggan Educate Together national school is mentioned.

The increase in enrolments at Balbriggan Educate Together national school is a vindication of the decision taken by the Department to give recognition to this school and include it on the capital building programme in the first year of the school's existence. The Department is cognisant of the rapid increase in demand for school places in the Balbriggan area. Further expansion of the primary school provision is under consideration, both in terms of expanding existing schools where site capacity will allow, and the provision of new schools on greenfield sites.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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Educate Together was not on the March list.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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With regard to the Fingal school model, on top of the interventions outlined, the Department has also entered into a cross-Government agreement with Fingal County Council to provide much-needed community facilities in tandem with schools.

Under the terms of the agreement and based on school planning projections of the Department, Fingal will identify and acquire appropriate sites where schools with enhanced sporting, community and arts facilities will be built to the benefit of both the school and the wider community. In practice, the local authority will identify the sites when adopting the local authority plans. The council will go on to acquire sufficient land as recommended by the Department, on which an appropriate sized school or schools for that local area can then be built.

With regard to staffing, at the beginning of the current year there were no fewer than 4,000 extra teachers in primary schools compared with four years ago. The average class size in primary schools is 24, and there is now one teacher for every 17 pupils at primary level.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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The Minister of State's time is concluded.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I do not know if there is anything specific to Swords mentioned in this document. Swords does not appear to be mentioned.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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That proves my point, does it not?

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I hope the Deputy——

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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It is the size of Waterford city, it should be addressed.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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It is a rather long speech and Swords may be mentioned. I am sure the Deputy has a copy.