Ulick Burke (Fine Gael)

Will the Leader intervene with the Minister for Education and Science as a matter of urgency following the result of the court case yesterday that leaves a family facing costs of over €1 million, having unsuccessfully sought adequate help and educational facilities for their child through the Minister and the Department of Education and Science? It is unusual for the Minister to seek costs in such cases and I do not know why she would do so in this instance. Is this a new era or are we already implementing recently published legislation in which the previous Minister suggested court cases should be avoided in all possible instances? This is a serious case and I ask the Leader to raise the matter with the Minister to allow the family, who have a child with attention deficit disorder, to live their lives and provide for the child as best they can without this crippling debt.