Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 62: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the primary schools, estimated to be 50 in total, which will lose a teaching post from September 2008 in view of the failure to reduce the staffing schedule from 27 children to 26 children per classroom teacher. [13470/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The Department of Education and Science has published the staffing schedule for the 2008-09 school year. Given the increased enrolments in primary schools generally, the application of the schedule is likely to result in an increase of over 600 mainstream teaching posts for primary schools in the next school year.

Approximately 120 posts will be lost in schools that had fewer pupils enrolled on 30 September 2007 than on 30 September 2006. It is estimated that up to 50 of these posts might have been retained under a schedule that operated on the basis of a general rule of one classroom teacher for every 26 children compared to the basis of the current schedule which is a general rule of 27 children per classroom teacher. I am arranging to have provided for the Deputy a list of the schools that might fit the alternative criterion, if it had applied.

I caution, however, that the final position cannot be determined until the independent staffing appeals process that is available to boards of management of individual schools has taken place. Under this process schools can submit an appeal under certain criteria to an appeal board, specially established to adjudicate on appeals on mainstream staffing allocations in primary schools. Details of the criteria and application dates for appeal are contained in the staffing schedule. The appeal board operates independently of the Department and its decision is final.

The Government has made provision for approximately 1,200 extra primary and post-primary teachers to be appointed in the next school year. These include the net increase of circa 500 teachers referred to and others who will be employed in special education and language support posts.

Budget 2008 provided €4.6 billion, or €380 million extra, for teacher pay and pensions. This is a substantial level of additional investment in the current economic environment and reflects the huge improvements made in school staffing in recent years.

In the primary sector, approximately 6,000 more teachers are on the Department's payroll than in 2002. Extra teachers have been provided in the 2006-07 and 2007-08 school years to reduce class sizes. The programme for Government contains a commitment to provide 4,000 additional primary teachers between 2007 and 2012. With the extra teachers already put in place this year and those provided for in the budget, we are ahead of target with approximately 2,000 extra primary teachers to be delivered in just two years.

Over the lifetime of the Government, we are committed to providing more primary school teachers specifically to reduce class sizes. We will also continue our focus on measures to improve the quality of education in our primary schools to ensure increased resources lead to better outcomes for our children.

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister for her reply but it did not address my question. I asked the Minister to name the 50 or so schools which will lose a teacher in 2008 because of her failure, and that of her colleagues in the Government, to honour promises made before the last general election and in the programme for Government.

Two months ago, I asked a similar question only to be informed there were IT problems with getting the names of the schools in question. It is some IT system that on a Priority Question from the Opposition the Minister cannot give us the list of shame.

The Minister was filleted at the INTO conference last month because of her failure to honour her promise in the programme for Government to reduce staffing schedules from 27 to 24 children over the next three years. For the 50 schools that will be affected, will the Minister examine changing the retention schedule which will allow them not to lose a much-needed teacher?

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The list of schools affected is being extracted and will be given to the Deputy presently. It would be impossible to list them all here. It is a genuine case of officials having to go through the IT system to inform us which schools will lose 120 teachers. When the information is complied it will be forwarded to the Deputy.

We examined the possibility in-house of changing the retention schedule. In the current economic climate, however, with the extra numbers attending school in September, it is not possible to do it this year. I would like to have continued the process I started in 2006 of reducing class sizes. The Deputy, however, will accept the economic climate is not good in allowing us to achieve all of what we had set out to do. It still remains a Government commitment, however.

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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We do not know if the Minister will still be in the position to continue this process in a month. The very best of luck to her in the Cabinet reshuffle. Will she inform the House how much it will cost to reduce the average size by one child in the staffing schedule? My information is that it is not a large amount of money.

Will she give a guarantee to the House that she will honour the commitment made before, during and after the general election for the 2009 staffing schedule?

Is it still the Government's policy, enunciated in 2002, that children nine years of age and younger will be in class sizes of 20 or fewer?

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The cost per teacher is estimated to be €60,000. It is made up not only by the employment of the teacher but knock-on effects such as posts of responsibility, administrative principals etc.

The 50 schools in question are the only ones to lose but others may gain teachers. It must be acknowledged that a greater number of teachers would be coming into the system if those 50 schools were not affected. Some of these schools might be able to retain teachers under the appeals system.

Considering the current international economic climate, no one can say what will happen. Reducing the staffing schedule remains a Government commitment but it must be considered in the context of finances available during the Estimates process. It is a matter for which we will continue to fight.

Concerning class sizes for children aged nine and under, John Carr, general secretary of the INTO, said that reducing the class schedule from 29 to 27 children and then to 24 would enable schools to break junior infants classes from two to three groups.

Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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That is only for one year.