James Bannon (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House this evening to take this motion. On numerous occasions I have raised the issue of Lanesboro Community College, County Longford, and the need for the Minister for Education and Science to provide an urgent and detailed update on her specific commitment to the refurbishment work at the college in light of the inordinate delay in bringing the built environment of this school to an acceptable standard in the interests of the safety of pupils and staff and to facilitate the advancement of the educational process.

This is the third time I have raised the matter of Lanesboro Community College on the Adjournment. The previous Minister for Education and Science assured me that Lanesboro would be included in the school building programme for 2005 but this did not happen.

The built environment in Lanesboro Community College is appalling. The principal, staff, pupils and board of management have worked together in conditions that most of us would regard with horror. Not only have they worked in substandard conditions for years but they have done so while providing outstanding educational opportunities for their pupils. How long does the Minister expect them to continue to perform miracles?

The educational process is assisted by the built environment and lack of facilities in this day and age could seriously impede pupil progress. The students at Lanesboro deserve more, as do the hard working principal, staff and board of management. There is growing discontent among parents that the refurbishment of the college has taken so long to come to fruition and because the project has not been progressed to its final stage. There is also grave concern for the safety of all concerned as some of the building is in a dangerously substandard condition.

Thankfully, in the interests of health and safety, the electrical installations were replaced last year under the summer works scheme. Despite this work, €900,000 is still required, as per the Department of Education and Science's estimate, to bring the school to an acceptable standard.

Since I raised this issue, there has been a further grant increase by the Department but to quote an old truism, actions speak louder than words and no one is more aware of the empty words of this Government than those in the education sector who have been forced to work in appalling conditions with nothing but empty promises to sustain them. Several times each year we have been called by the board of management to meetings highlighting the inadequacies at the school.

The Minister should forget the empty words and promises and deliver a genuine commitment to action here this evening for Lanesboro Community College. There has been an increase in funding but it is still not enough to create a safe environment for the children and staff in the building.