Paschal Donohoe (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to discuss this issue. I also thank the Cathaoirleach for allowing me to raise it. There has been much discussion recently about the need for diversity and how we provide for schools and look after our pupils. One of the movements that has been to the forefront of this is the gaelscoileanna. One such gaelscoil in my constituency, Gaelscoil Bharra, was founded in 1996. It is an exceptionally successful school with around 200 pupils. I have brought this matter to the attention of the Minister of State because of the circumstances within which the students are trying to learn and within which the staff are doing their best to teach.

I am happy to speak about this matter because in spite of their circumstances, the recognition of the school in my community and the way the pupils and the parents speak about it are fantastic. While we spend so much time talking about the difficulties with which we must deal as a society, I have no doubt that if every school had the reputation of this school, those difficulties would be much smaller.

The entire school is housed in prefabs. It is very close to where I live and for many years before I became active in politics I was always under the presumption that those prefabs were changing facilities for the local GAA club while the fine building next to the prefabs was used by the school. Shortly after I was elected to Dublin City Council, I got a letter from the school and went to meet its representatives. I discovered to my horror that the pupils were in the prefabs and the fine building was the GAA club which had provided the land for the school as a significant gesture to the community. I went into the school and got a tour from the principal who took me to the area used for teaching pupils with special needs. The same area serves as a storage facility for the school's cleaning materials. Pupils who are brought in for special needs education must sit beside a mop and bucket and some spare dusty computers that happened to be there when I visited.

We are all full of intent and nobody accepts that this is acceptable in this day and age. In spite of all that intent and the attitude that the Minister of State will speak about, the fact is that this school is 11 years old and has received many promises. The pupils and teachers have got to the point where they just do not have any faith because it is so slow in moving forward and promises made in the past have not been fulfilled. Teachers are now considering industrial action because they are so exasperated.

This is why I have brought the matter to the attention of the House. None of us can be proud of this. I ask the Government to act as rapidly as possible to ensure a school that is flourishing can get the premises and facilities it deserves. I again thank the Cathaoirleach for allowing me to raise this matter and I look forward to the Minister of State's response.