Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for being present, but I am very disappointed by the response she has been given. It is full of Civil Service speak and passes the ball completely to the NCSE and presumes that it will look at the issue. I do not know from the speech the Minister has delivered whether the Department or the NCSE has one iota of knowledge of the existence of the rapid prompting method.

I would have thought that, at the very least, the Department would undertake to examine the issue and ask the NCSE to give some kind of response on whether it considers investment and promotion of the rapid prompting method, or RPM, to be suitable. This answer could have been given in relation to a myriad of different issues. It is complete civil servants' speak and I am disappointed because it tells me nothing about whether the Department knows or cares anything about this.

Since the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, is not here, I ask the Minister present, Deputy Heather Humphreys, to raise this matter with her at my request and on behalf of the families who care so much about the rapid prompting method and who are encouraged by it. Will she draw this to the Minister for Education and Skills' attention and ask her to bring this forward in her Department? The Department of Education and Skills should examine the RPM, find out more and tell us what they think of it, given the current state of knowledge about it.