Mary Moran (Labour) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State, Deputy Perry, always seems to take those Adjournment debates where I am not happy with the response. I am very disappointed in this instance. Where a child has an intellectual disability or, as in this case, special needs, we must consider each case individually.

If the child was attending a normal school, that is, one that was not a special school, his parents could just send him to a different school in the area if that was their preference. Unfortunately, as the child is attending a special school and no other special school is available, he is caught in a terrible loop. His parents are clearly unhappy with his current placement. They have noticed a significant improvement since removing him. Surely, where they send their child to school is a matter of parental choice. He has been out of school since last April, some eight months ago, and priority needs to be given to his case. We owe him the right to an education.