Marie Moloney (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I could have done without the first part of the Minister of State's reply because it merely outlined statistics we already know. All I wanted was a response to my request. The reply given is contradictory to what I asked. The Minister of State stated: "it is not possible to vary these dates as to do so could result in internship periods running into the summer holiday period in 2014". What I have suggested would have the opposite effect because interns would be able to start earlier, at the beginning of the school year, instead of waiting until mid to late September. If the date for authentication were brought forward to 1 July, schools would be ready to roll when the school year starts because they would have completed the Garda vetting process. As Garda vetting takes six to eight weeks, there is no way schools can be ready to take on interns at the start of the school year if they commence the process on 1 August. I am not happy with the Minister of State's reply and I believe the matter should be raised with the Minister for Social Protection. The answer is not appropriate to my question.