Michael Mullins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I join Senator Paul Coghlan in condemning the mindless act of vandalism on Carrauntoohil. Unfortunately, we are seeing far too many of those types of theft and acts of vandalism around the country. At some stage, we need to have a debate on civic pride and how we can restore it, and how to ensure valuable and important monuments like this are protected and preserved.

I urge the ASTI and the TUI to call off the strike that is planned for 2 December in regard to junior cycle reform. I make my call to enable further discussions on an element of the proposed reform, given that many people have been calling for this to take place for the past 30 years. Most of us would feel the Minister has moved on significantly from the proposals put forward by the former Minister, Deputy Ruairí Quinn. As we know, 60% of marks in the junior cycle will be based on an exam at the end of the third year, while 40% will be based on school-based projects and portfolios. It was a key demand that a State certificate would be issued at the end of the third year. The union leadership has endorsed a day of strikes, but the members - the teachers in the various schools around the country - have not been asked to vote on the revised proposals. Parents and students have welcomed the proposals put forward by the Minister, Deputy O'Sullivan, as have the school management bodies.

Education Training Boards Ireland has urged the unions to give their full support to implementation of the much needed reform of the junior cycle programme. It has now considered the many concerns raised by teachers and it is clearly in the best interests of students. A strike next week would be of huge concern and cause disruption to students and parents and would not be in the best interests of anybody. I urge the teaching unions, even at this late stage, to pull back and enter into further discussions on possibly fine-tuning some of the proposals brought forward by the Minister.

I ask the Leader to provide time for a debate in the House on farm and industrial safety, given the appalling loss of life we have seen in recent weeks on farms. At the weekend two men lost their lives owing to a tractor tyre. While the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Simon Coveney, has taken the issue of farm safety very seriously, having another opportunity to promote the issue even further would be desirable.