Cecilia Keaveney (Fianna Fail)

It would be remiss of me not to acknowledge that I recently received a little local publicity after producing a press release which stated that I was successful in getting the Government to toss my local school. I was even more successful in that we secured the money to rebuild it. The school was on the building programme for quite some time. It involves an amalgamation and is now under construction. Another school is under construction in Clonmany.

Moville Community College also became a reality. It started with prefabs but we did not like that concept so we approached the Minister and asked that the next stage be constructed in cement. We promised it would not cost any more that the cost of prefab accommodation. We delivered on that. I raise this parochial issue as an example of how these things can be done. The school now has a significant and beautiful building, although a little more must be done to finalise the overall accommodation needs. Perhaps the Minister will note the name of the college. The important element is that we undertook not to overspend. Many projects have overspent in the past. We also acknowledged that it was unnecessary to spend so much money on architects, fees and so forth. The standard model concept for four, six and eight teacher schools is cost effective.

Senator Healy Eames mentioned that there is a different economic climate now and said we should anticipate our future needs and what our children will be doing in the future. I would therefore have been less surprised if the motion dealt with course content for primary school, how it is delivered and how to develop analytical skills and deliver the critical mind.