Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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110. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will review the decision to remove free school transport for students from an area (details supplied) in County Donegal to their current secondary school; and if she will ensure the free school transport scheme rules provided by her Department for Bus Éireann for implementation are changed to ensure mountain passes which are not traversable in winter months will no longer used be in determining eligibility for free transport. [25809/15]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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Will the Minister review the decision to remove free school transport from students in Urris, Clonmany, County Donegal who are attending Carndonagh community school? Will she ensure free school transport is extended to them? Will she amend the terms of the free school transport scheme to ensure mountain passes that are inaccessible for a good part of the school year are not used in determining the nearest school for the purposes of deciding eligibility for free school transport?

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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During the 2014-15 school year Bus Éireann discovered that a number of children had been incorrectly assessed as being eligible for school transport, a matter that was discussed previously with the Deputy, and were availing of free transport because they held valid medical cards. The families were informed of this error. They were also advised by Bus Éireann that from the 2015-16 school year these children may only avail of school transport on a concessionary basis. Transport on a concessionary basis is subject to a number of conditions, including payment of the annual charge.

Bus Éireann determines distance eligibility by measuring the shortest traversable route which may be either pedestrian or vehicular from a family's home to their nearest school. The main purpose of this measurement is to identify the distance families reside from their nearest school and assess if they meet the distance eligibility criterion for school transport. In the interests of equity, this is applied on a consistent standard basis across the country, irrespective of local circumstances that may impact on travel conditions on particular routes during parts of the year. The Deputy asked whether it was in the gift of the Minister to alter this. We had this discussion previously. The scheme must be fair throughout the country and that is what is happening. When an error occurs, it is corrected to ensure the scheme is implemented fairly across the board. That is the way it must be. The Deputy raised this issue previously and said parts of the route could not be traversed in winter. The bus route will not pass through the Mamore Gap because the route is planned to suit individuals eligible to use the bus service. Bus Éireann has stated it will not use that route, but it is still used to measure the distance from a school.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for his reply, but I must say it is exceptionally disappointing. It is disgraceful that the Department has not looked at the particular circumstances of this case and changed its approach. It is over two months since I raised this matter on the floor of the Dáil with the Minister of State. I genuinely thought it was well within the capacity of the Department, the Minister and the Minister of State to look at it and resolve it. Unfortunately, that is not the case and, with other councillors and Members of the Oireachtas, I had to attend a public meeting last night with parents from the Urris area and parents of the affected students. They continue to fight the case because the Department, the Minister and the Minister of State have not seen sense. The Minister of State has admitted on the floor of the Dáil today that Bus Éireann made a mistake in not applying the rules three years ago, yet he is telling students who have completed first, second and third year that if they are to continue in their current school, Carndonagh community school, they will have to pay for school transport. This was a mistake made by Bus Éireann and the Department. They should admit to it and, at a minimum, waive the fee for the students involved. In doing so it would not affect precedent.

The other issue that must be addressed is that the Department is using a mountain pass in deciding what school the students should attend. On 29 April I sent the Minister of State a video a parent had made showing the route five weeks before the end of the school term. There was snow on this mountain pass.

The Minister of State refuses to acknowledge and to change an unfair and inequitable transport scheme to ensure situations like this can be corrected.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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On a point of clarification, Deputy McConalogue and many other Members from all parties raised this issue a number of months ago. At that time the Deputy made it clear the issue was one of concern about going over that gap. The Deputy sent me a video which I watched. The officials in the Department have checked it out and this application has been appealed independently of the Department and has been upheld. The Deputy's concern was with regard to travelling through the gap. Bus Éireann has confirmed in writing to the Deputy, to the applicants and to my office that the route will not be used. That was the Deputy's original concern which we investigated and checked out. I wish to be clear that it will not be used for transport. It is used to measure distance. I remind Deputy McConalogue that his colleague, the previous Minister with responsibility for education, who was from Donegal, passed and implemented that scheme.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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It is the Minister of State's scheme and he can change it.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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Furthermore, it has been the precedent that when an error occurs, the pupils in question can continue with the arrangement for the remainder of that year, but they are informed immediately that it will revert in the next school year to be fair to everyone else. This is what happened in this case. The pupils were informed in 2015 and the arrangement will change back in December. The scheme has to be seen to be fair to everyone. I am surprised the Deputy is asking for it to be in any way different. To be clear, the Deputy and other Members raised the matter a few months ago. It was appealed and reviewed by the Department in a fair and equitable way. I ask the Deputy not to give the impression that we did not.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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The parents are issuing an invitation to the Minister of State to view the route which the Department is measuring as being the closest - the Mamore gap. If he were to come to Donegal I would be very willing to show it to him and he would not be telling me in the House that it would be unfair not to use that as a route.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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We made it clear a few months ago that we are not going to use that route.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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Please, Minister.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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I can tell the Minister of State what his Department is doing. It is now saying that those students have to go to Buncrana, which is four miles longer, to get to Carndonagh community school because they cannot use that gap. This means more fuel, longer bus times and more expense. The Minister of State is saying that if those students are to go to Buncrana, the Department will have to put on another bus to take them that extra long route to Buncrana. That is what the Department has decided. It would cost the Minister of State's Department more money. It will split that parish because the children will have to go to different schools and siblings will be split between different schools. This is the situation the Minister of State is refusing to change. There is a thing called common sense and it seems the Department of Education and Skills and the Ministers are not intervening to ensure common sense is brought into play in this instance. The Minister of State is telling the parents of students in first, second and third years that regardless of their income and their capacity to pay, if they want their student to continue to go to Carndonagh community school next year, they will have to pony up €350 for one student or €650 for two students to continue to go to Carndonagh community school.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy is over time now.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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Many parents cannot pay and the Minister of State is not taking into account whether they can pay. It is totally unfair. At the very minimum that fee should be waived. We should see common sense brought into play-----

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I call the Minister of State.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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-----in order that the circumstances that are particular to this area are acknowledged and the Minister of State's approach to the scheme is changed.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I call the Minister of State. I ask Members to have regard, please, for the other Deputies who have questions.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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The scheme has to be implemented fairly across the board. The situation referred to by the Deputy is not unique. We hear similar stories regularly from throughout the country. I remind the Deputy that we are using taxpayers' money and there has to be a national scheme that is implemented fairly across the board. I cannot operate any other scheme. We have always accepted that we would look at the scheme to see if any errors were being made but that is not the case. The scheme is being implemented properly and fairly. The route referred to by the Deputy and which is of concern to him is not being used. The route being used for measurement is different from the first issue which the Deputy raised in the House a couple of months ago. The scheme has to be implemented throughout the country in a fair way.

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister of State can change the scheme.