Séamus Kirk (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to raise this most important issue, the need for the Government to address the position of 17 teachers employed by the International School of Martyrs, ISM, in Tripoli, Libya. The Government has failed to raise the plight of these 17 teachers from Ireland who are owed salaries totalling up to €200,000 by the ISM. These teachers have recently criticised the Irish Government for continuing to facilitate the leaving certificate curriculum at the school despite the non-payment of their wages.

The Tripoli-based International School of the Martyrs has offered the Irish syllabus and exam system since the mid-1990s. It is the only school outside Ireland to offer the leaving certificate curriculum and exams, and two of Colonel Gadaffi's grandchildren once studied at the school. The Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade are currently liaising with the Maltese authorities to facilitate the exams. Many of the school's expatriate staff, including the 17 teachers from Ireland, fled Libya when the uprising against Colonel Gadaffi began in February 2011. The co-educational school is now operating fully again, with 700 students enrolled, and more than 60 are registered to sit the leaving certificate this summer.

In an e-mail sent on 25 April, Ms Martina Mannion of the Irish State Examinations Commission, SEC, told the school dean, Moftah Messei, and its principal, Ms Donna McPhee, that the issue of the outstanding salaries was "an urgent matter" which the commission wished to see resolved. The school has not responded to the e-mail. The school claims that Libyan restrictions on overseas money transfers introduced following the 2011 revolution are the cause of the non-payment of salaries to the Irish teachers. Nevertheless, it appears the school had continued to pay the Department of Education and Skills the relevant fees to allow its students to sit the leaving certificate exams. It was claimed by teachers at the school that they had previously been paid through a Maltese bank account. The State Examinations Commission states it has no role in contractual issues between schools and their employees. It has been indicated that the SEC has been informed by some former teachers in the ISM that there are outstanding contractual issues between their employers and themselves, and in order to be helpful to these former employees of the school, the SEC has brought the concerns to the attention of the school authorities.

The school was established in the late 1950s to educate expatriate children whose parents worked in the oil sector and the diplomatic community. It was called the oil companies school and it is still known as that by many people in Tripoli. I urge the Minister to consider this most important issue, as 17 teachers - many of them young and out of training school - have loaned their expertise and training know-how to the school in Tripoli. Not everybody would relish the challenge of teaching there but they did. Unfortunately, they have yet to be paid for a period in which they were employed, so I urge the Minister to explore the possibility of some diplomatic initiative being taken on the matter. The possibility of using diplomatic channels in this way should be explored.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I am taking this matter on behalf of my colleague, the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, who the House will appreciate is in Brussels today. I thank Deputy Kirk for raising this issue, which is I know of great concern to the individuals involved and their families.

I understand that the teachers' dispute with the International School of the Martyrs, ISM, in Tripoli has been ongoing for some two years now. At issue is a sum of €142,000 in unpaid salaries owed to 17 Irish nationals who were employed as teachers by the ISM in Tripoli, Libya. Deputies will, of course, be aware that the ISM is the only educational institution outside of Ireland which offers the leaving certificate to its students, as Deputy Kirk correctly stated. The teachers in question were employed directly by the ISM to teach the leaving certificate. The unpaid salaries date back to the early months of 2011 when, due to the popular uprising and large-scale conflict which erupted in Libya at that time, the individuals concerned were either required to leave Libya or were unable to return there to complete their contracts for reasons of personal security.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade was only made aware of this issue of unpaid salaries in early May. Officials in the Department have discussed the matter with relevant officials in both the Department of Education and Skills and the State Examinations Commission. I understand that the State Examinations Commission has already intervened directly with ISM some weeks ago requesting that the issue be resolved and that any sums outstanding to the teachers concerned be paid immediately and in full. Ongoing contact at official level on the issue is being maintained between the two bodies. It is obviously for the Department of Education and Skills and for the State Examinations Commission to set out their own position on this matter. From the perspective of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, however, the sole concern and reason for involvement has been to offer any assistance to help achieve a resolution to this contractual dispute between 17 Irish nationals and the privately owned and operated International School of the Martyrs in Tripoli.

At the Tánaiste's direction, the Irish Embassy in Rome, which is also accredited to Libya, has now made direct representations to both the ISM and to the Libyan Government on this matter. We have formally requested the assistance of the Libyan Foreign Ministry to ensure the outstanding contractual obligations and money owed to the Irish teachers by the ISM are fully met and paid. Officials in the embassy in Rome have also spoken with the principal of the ISM and urged that this matter be resolved as speedily as possible and the outstanding moneys paid. The ISM, for its part, has suggested that there are technical difficulties which prevent it at present from transferring the amounts owed and paying the teachers. I understand that these difficulties relate to the much more stringent controls on large financial transfers which now apply in Libya since the fall of the Gadaffi regime.

The Tánaiste and the Government remain anxious that this issue be resolved as soon as possible and that the outstanding salaries be paid. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the embassy in Rome will continue its efforts to secure the assistance of the Libyan authorities and of the ISM in resolving this matter. Libya is a country with which Ireland has traditionally enjoyed excellent bilateral relations. There are strong historical and cultural links between the two countries and many Libyans have chosen to make Ireland their home and have made an important contribution to Irish society. The Government remains strongly committed to developing our bilateral relations even further and to promoting greater co-operation in areas of mutual interest. It is important to recall this context in considering this particular issue and the current efforts to resolve it.

Séamus Kirk (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister, Deputy Howlin, for the comprehensive response. I agree that we enjoy strong cultural ties and bilateral relations with Libya, and I hope they will be an invaluable conduit in bringing about a resolution to the matter. I ask the Minister to request his colleague, the Tánaiste, to explore the possibility of establishing a liaison in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade who would be available to a representative or some of the teachers involved. At least in those circumstances they could be kept up to date on the position.

Part of the difficulty with all of this is the teachers not knowing what the position is. If the Department of Foreign Affairs is in a position to take some responsibility, or at least to provide up-to-date information, it would be much appreciated.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I will certainly pass on the Deputy's request to the Tánaiste who I know has a personal interest in the matter. For clarity, I should tell the Deputy and the House the leaving certificate examination will go ahead. For security reasons, it will be held once again in a centre in Malta. I know Deputies will recognise it would be completely unjust to the students involved, who are not at fault in any way in this matter, to suggest they should not be allowed to sit the exam for which they have been studying for so long. I will fully brief the Tánaiste on the matter raised by Deputy Kirk.