Fergal Browne (Fine Gael)

The raising of the issue of school transport will be welcomed by everyone in the House, although the issue was badly timed and mishandled. It was grossly unfair on the VECs, Bus Éireann and the parents and children to have such pressure put on them in July and August. The decision will be implemented for primary school children next year and will be done over a year and a half. The decision to do it was not wrong, the timing was wrong. Lessons must be learned from this and I urge the Leader to speak to the Minister for Education and Science and suggest to her that she write to the VECs and Bus Éireann and thank them for the great work they did in difficult circumstances during the summer. Hopefully we will get an assurance that lessons have been learned from this fiasco when the same policy is being implemented for primary schools.

I do not often agree with the Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Deputy Parlon, but I was in full agreement with him when he spoke on Sunday about the terrible drug problem. Since I came into this House, I have been to three funerals in Carlow of people who have died from cocaine use and many other families are affected by it. We should debate the misuse of drugs.