Ulick Burke (Fine Gael)

I move amendment No. 5:

In page 19, line 37, after "disabilities" to insert ", and ensure that children with disabilities are not subject to bullying or unfair treatment".

Bullying is a fact of life in many schools, at both primary and secondary level. It is a greater tragedy if children with special needs are regarded as an easier target for such bullying. Both the Minister of State and I acknowledge that in many schools, the boards of management, teachers and students go out of their way to be visibly supportive of children with special needs. It only takes one person to increase the difficulty for children with special needs. That difficulty often manifests itself at home rather than in the school environment. A child may refuse to go to school or it may manifest as illness.

I ask the Minister of State to accept this amendment. There is no national plan for dealing with bullying. It is dealt with at local level. A national plan to deal with bullying in the workplace was called for and reported on in the newspapers last week. In this instance, it is very important that the school is mandated to protect children and to provide even greater protection for children with special needs. I qualify that statement by saying that most schools are very sensitive to the idea that bullying must be eliminated from the school situation. It is important that this legislation clearly states that school authorities must eliminate bullying as quickly as possible.