Mary Moran (Labour)

Boards of management may have power but much of the time those boards may not even be consulted. I have personal experience of this matter and I am aware that the first one will hear about a particular teacher being employed is when one receives a telephone call to ratify his or her appointment. There might have been no consultation prior to said telephone call being made. What the Government is proposing will give rise to a vast improvement. I previously taught many pupils who became teachers and who ended up on the redeployment panel. I can only describe those to whom I refer as being excellent teachers and I have written numerous references for them because it is my opinion that they are the brightest sparks for the future. We want to retain these individuals rather than educating them and then seeing them leave the country. The legislation seeks to improve matters in this area.

Senator Healy Eames referred to the competency of teachers. What the Minister is proposing in the context of changes to the Teaching Council and in respect of compulsory professional development will be of assistance in that regard.