Derek Keating (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if his attention has been drawn to the fact that there are 400 children in a school (details supplied) in County Dublin being educated in prefabricated accommodation; the reason he has decided to build a new school 200 metres from this existing school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17451/13]

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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As the Deputy will be aware, there are two schools on this site, a junior school and a senior school, both of which have temporary accommodation in addition to their permanent structures and have applied to the Department for replacement permanent buildings. The next step to progressing a building project for the schools involves the appointment of a design team and the commencement of the architectural planning process. School building projects such as this one that are not included in the five-year construction programme will continue to be progressed to final planning stages in anticipation of further funds being available to the Department in the future.

My Department has decided to build a new primary school close to the schools in question in order to meet an identified demographic need in the area. Lucan has been identified as an area in which there will be a requirement for significant additional school provision at post-primary and primary levels during the coming years. It is within this context that, in 2011, the Minister announced the future establishment of a new 1,000-pupil second level school and a new 16-classroom primary school. The primary school will open in temporary accommodation in September 2013 under the patronage of County Dublin VEC. It will be a multidenominational, English medium, co-educational primary school. Both primary and post-primary schools will cater for increasing demographic demand in the general Lucan area.

Derek Keating (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I am aware that the Minister of State, Deputy Sherlock, is deputising for the Minister, Deputy Quinn, today who is on Government business in London. I heard the Minister, who is a man for whom I have tremendous respect as a person and as a Minister, in the course of the opening of Adamstown library last year indicate that during the course of his tenure it was his intention to ensure that all children had a permanent building, a warm classroom, a chair and a desk. That is something I very much support. Even in the short time the Minister is in office he has made significant progress. In my constituency of Dublin Mid-West nine schools building projects have been approved, including extensions. I welcome the new schools, the campaigns for which have been ongoing for many years.

I wish to raise the issue of temporary accommodation. In advance of this Dáil session I discovered that the difficulty is that some of the schools in my area – I will stick to Lucan as the Minister of State referred to it in his reply – are at a less advanced stage of progression than was the case many years ago. Within a couple of hundred metres of the school to which the Minister of State referred, there are 13 prefabricated buildings in Archbishop Ryan junior and senior national schools. Many people in the community are at a loss as to why the school has not been prioritised. In the case of Esker junior and senior national schools there are 17 prefabricated buildings. Those schools in particular feel they have not progressed much in the intervening years. St. Mary’s national school in Lucan village is another such school.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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Thank you, Deputy.

Derek Keating (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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If I could have another minute, I will not respond further to the Minister of State.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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Only one minute is provided for the Deputy and for the Minister’s response. I will allow the Deputy to proceed. I appreciate his co-operation.

Derek Keating (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I would be happy to forward the list that has been compiled to the Minister’s office. I seek the assistance of the Minister of State, through the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn, in arranging for me to meet departmental officials to examine the process. Much information has been collected and there is a great deal of frustration at the number of prefabricated buildings. I have provided examples of the numbers involved. I ask the Minister of State, through his good offices and those of the Minister, to arrange a meeting for me with departmental officials to discuss the matter to see how we can explain the situation to the relevant schools in Lucan and to help to progress the issue. I would be grateful if I could achieve that today.

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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The Deputy should make the request.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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Does the Minister of State not have anything further to add?

Derek Keating (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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Could I not make it now?

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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The Deputy should make the request in writing. It is on the record. The Deputy will appreciate that the demographic issue is clear. His situation in Lucan is not untypical of other parts of the country, including my area where there are serious demographic demands. There is a feeling among existing schools that they have been bypassed in favour of the creation of new schools. However, the demographic projection figures do not lie and therefore we face a cliff in certain parts of the country in terms of educational provision and it is necessary to build new schools. Without plámásing, I sympathise with the views expressed by Deputy Keating. If he makes a request to the Minister, Deputy Quinn, the Minister will take it from there.