Michael Brennan (Progressive Democrats)

I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science, Deputy Haughey, to the House. As a member of the board of Scoil Naomh Iosaf in Adare, I ask the Minister of State for an update on the school's request to have an assessment carried out to determine the role of the Old Monastery CBS buildings in meeting the school's future education needs. The buildings are in urgent need of repair and improvement and are being temporarily used by Scoil Naomh Iosaf to house a physical education hall, an extra classroom and a learning support classroom for speech, drama and modern language classes.

As the Minister of State is aware, while the property forms part of the school complex, it is not vested with the Department. The buildings are vested with the bishop's nominees and trustees and the parish priest of Adare who have requested the Department to carry out an urgent assessment because the property is in a poor state of repair. The educational needs of the community in Adare are at stake. Given the urgency of the suitability of the buildings, I ask the Minister of State if the assessment could be carried out by the Department in the near future, with a view to meeting the future educational needs of the Adare community.