Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Can Members not participating in the Topical Issue debate please leave the Chamber quietly? The first matter for discussion comes from Deputy Catherine Connolly, who wishes to discuss the provision of bus transport to enable children with special needs to participate in the July provision programme.

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle agus i dtús báire ba mhaith liom comhghairdeas a ghabháil leis an Aire nua guím gach rath uirthi in a ról nua. Faraor géar tá orm an t-ábhar seo a ardú inniu. Cheap mé go mbeadh sé réitithe mar tá an t-ábhar thar a bheith goilliúnach agus tá gá le córas iompair a bheith ag na daltaí chun freastal ar an July provision. I congratulate the Minister and wish her the best in her new role.

Unfortunately, I have to raise this topic today. I wish I did not. The school wrote to the Minister and I wrote to the Minister. I realise that she is in a new role and getting familiar with the brief. The matter relates to a specific school in Galway, Ábalta, with children who have special needs, including autism. We fought a battle in the Dáil to ensure that the July provision would go ahead. The Minister's colleague and former Minister, Deputy Joe McHugh, did tremendous work to ensure that the July provision is going ahead and that it was extended, which I welcome. Unfortunately, we appealed to the schools to come forward and they came forward, including Ábalta in Galway, but it was not matched with school transport. I understand that in this particular situation, all the arrangements were made. The drivers, bus escorts and everybody else was in agreement and able to comply with whatever social distancing requirements there were, but they have received no response from the Department other than an acknowledgement, and no explanation as to why school transport could not be provided and paid for by the Department. Perhaps the Minister will clarify that.

I do not need to take all of my time. This is an important issue generally. How can the July provision function properly if children cannot access that service? This also raises the question of what will happen with schools in September. I would appreciate if the Minister could answer that.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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I thank Deputy Connolly. I join in congratulating the Minister on her appointment and acknowledge that, for her first week here dealing with the Topical Issue debate, she has had more than her fair share of cases.

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for raising the matter. Before I address the specific issue raised, I would like to provide to the Members an outline of the extent of the school transport service.

School transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of my Department. In the 2019-20 school year, more than 120,000 children, including more than 14,200 children with special educational needs, were transported in more than 5,000 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering more than 100 million km at a cost of more than €219 million in 2019. The purpose of my Department's school transport scheme is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children whose homes are remote from their nearest school.

With regard to transport for the summer provision programme 2020, given the exceptional circumstances in planning for delivery of the programme and the shorter than normal timeframe in which to plan for school transport services, in addition to the expansion of the programme and coupled with the social distancing requirements as per health advice, the Department was not in a position to provide school transport for the programme this year.

However, my Department will provide grant funding to support families with the cost of transport arrangements for those children who are eligible for school transport and who have been approved to participate in the summer programme. The grant payment is based on the distance that a family resides from their child's school of attendance. The calculation is based on four trips per day - home to school and school to home, morning and afternoon - multiplied by the number of days a child attends school for the programme. The current rate of grant is 39.12 cent per kilometre for the first 6,437 km travelled and 21.22 cent per kilometre for each kilometre travelled thereafter.

Families who are already in receipt of the special transport grant for children with special educational needs will be paid as normal following the completion of the summer provision programme 2020. Families who currently avail of a transport service will be contacted by school transport section following the completion of the summer provision programme 2020 in regard to the arrangements for payment.

Families who are not in a position to make their own transport arrangements in order to avail of the school-based programme may contact the special education section of my Department with a view to inquiring about the home-based programme.

I again thank the Deputy for raising this matter and for affording me the opportunity to provide an outline of the extent of the school transport scheme and to respond to the specific issue raised.

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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I wish the Minister the best in her new role, but I am not happy with her reply, which is the same as a reply we got already. I along with colleagues tabled a parliamentary question and that was the standard reply we got. I am trying to go behind that reply.

A number of children with special needs have suffered enough because of Covid. They now cannot attend the July provision because there is no transport. I already know the outline the Minister has given me, and I thank her for that. I am asking her as a new Minister to go behind that, stop the bureaucracy and look for a way of sorting this out so that children with special needs can attend the July provision. There is no way the Minister for Education and Skills can stand over children not being able to attend the school having been deprived of a service since mid-March. This is a very special circumstance. Providing funds is welcome, but it does not sort out the problem.

It has never been explained to the parents and the school why it is not possible. In this situation, all the arrangements have been made to comply with the requirements under Covid. We have no idea why it is not happening. Perhaps we could have a refreshing start of a new Minister, i mBéarla nó i nGaeilge, is cuma liom ach go mbeidh réiteach don fhadhb ar an talamh.

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I appreciate that the Deputy has acknowledged the importance of what the summer scheme means. There was considerable difficulty in getting it on stream given that the announcement was made on 12 June. Schools were notified on 15 June and it began operation on 29 June. From that point of view, there was a difficulty in putting transport in place. I accept that the Deputy said that in her specific case, this transport seems to be in place. It is important to acknowledge that there is the opportunity for grant assistance for families. The Deputy raised a specific issue relating to this particular school. I will give a commitment that my officials will look specifically at that and I will revert to her.