Results 5,581-5,600 of 9,820 for speaker:Thomas Byrne

Equal Status (Admission to Schools) Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: On the period of 12 months-----

Equal Status (Admission to Schools) Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: That is what is being presented here. We have not amended it. I am outlining to this Dáil the commitment of the Fianna Fáil Party to moving forward on this as quickly as possible. We want this addressed and we know it needs to be addressed. It will be addressed. We will not let it slide to the end of the 12-month period. We believe it can be dealt with before then. If this...

Equal Status (Admission to Schools) Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: I thank the Labour Party for introducing this Bill. It seems that, if we have proper consultation on this issue, it will be possible to reach a consensus in the Dáil. However, I do not see that consensus yet. For my part, that is primarily because I have not been able to meet all the interested parties. I have met some impressive lobby groups that made good cases in seeking the...

Other Questions: School Accommodation Provision (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: I would be slightly concerned about the Minister's reference to the Department's model clicking in when children are born. I presume there is an earlier process because, obviously, once houses are planned and estates developed, one can assume the houses will be filled to some extent with children.

Other Questions: School Accommodation Provision (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: 13. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to set out the status regarding the achievement of a permanent site for a school, details supplied. [18242/16]

Other Questions: School Accommodation Provision (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: The Minister will forgive me because I have tabled two questions with details supplied. I gather this one relates to St. Peter's national school in Dunboyne, which is a Church of Ireland school. It is the first since the foundation of the State to be established. It is an important school but there is no permanent site. I know the Minister is aware of it. At this stage there are not many...

Other Questions: School Accommodation Provision (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: Will the Minister give a timeframe? How long will this process be? How long will it take? We have all been aware of the process at local level. We are keen for this to be done as soon as possible. Certainly, I have no wish to interfere in the commercial side of the Department or put pressure there. In situations such as this and others that will arise as we need to build more schools in...

Other Questions: Teachers' Remuneration (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: Notwithstanding the fact that this matter is officially under the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, the Department of Education and Skills is one of the key Departments affected by it. Throughout the recession, young teachers were employed because we needed teachers whereas staff were not taken on in other areas of the public service. A large cohort of young teachers have been in...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: School Transport Administration (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: The Minister of State's answer has not provided any clarity to anybody. I would like him to clarify what is the position. Will students who have concessionary places lose out this September because of the review, or can he give a guarantee to this House that no students with concessionary places will lose out because of the review by his Department, that their place will be available on a...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: School Transport Administration (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: I want to clarify with the Minister of State that no students, regardless of their having concessionary places or otherwise, will lose their place on a school bus this September; that they are guaranteed their place on a school bus this September.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: School Transport Administration (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: 5. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to address concerns that the school transport scheme is not being run on an efficient basis, especially with regard to route selection criteria and criteria for providing a service to students wishing to avail of the scheme on a concessionary basis. [18466/16]

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: School Transport Administration (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: School transport is an issue of major concern. My difficulty is there are three different positions on the scheme within the Department. These are outlined in a ministerial briefing, the programme for Government and by a press officer following a major story in the Irish Independent. There is huge confusion among the public. A number of my colleagues, including Deputy Calleary, have been...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: School Admissions (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: 3. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills how he intends to deal with the issue of discrimination on religious grounds in school admissions; and his plans to insert a provision into the forthcoming schools admission Bill to deal with this issue. [18465/16]

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: School Admissions (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: The religious criterion for admission to schools has been a major issue for years. While the most famous example is in Dublin, I have come across it several times in Meath. We would like to know what the Minister intends to do in the Government's schools admission Bill, notwithstanding other Bills that are before us.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: School Admissions (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: Across the country, there is an increasing mismatch in patronage arrangements for national schools in particular, although it will become a more common issue for secondary schools as the years go on and as the bubble of national school students moves on. The overwhelming focus on patronage divestment during the past five years has distracted from the essential and immediately relevant...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: School Admissions (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: Does the Minister have a timeframe in mind? If Deputy Joan Burton's proposal were to succeed, or our proposal which is a variation on it, work will have to be done on catchment areas. Does the Department have administrative arrangements in place for this? This issue is rightly a political hot potato. It must be addressed and there is a responsibility on us to do so. We all see injustices...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Lansdowne Road Agreement (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: That is disappointing.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Lansdowne Road Agreement (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: The practicalities.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Lansdowne Road Agreement (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: I agree with the Minister on one point: the ASTI should be in talks. I encourage its members to ask their leadership to go into talks. I also ask the leadership to show leadership. It is not acceptable that children may be put at risk, not simply because of the repudiation but also because of the general atmosphere that would pervade in schools come September. That is what I am mostly...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Lansdowne Road Agreement (28 Jun 2016)

Thomas Byrne: 1. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his views on the dispute with the Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland, ASTI, over the Lansdowne Road agreement; and to provide an update on the arrangements for dealing with the data protection issues that may arise if financial emergency measures in the public interest legislation is applied to ASTI members in second level schools....