James Reilly (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is my understanding that the website of the Department of Education and Skills originally said the project was to finish - or at least commence - in 2014. I stand open to correction on that. It is important that the Minister meets the parents of the children in the school. It is more important than meeting all of us public representatives, although we would all be very keen to be there also. There was a number of public representatives at the meeting last Tuesday night. We all undertook to write to the Minister to again seek a meeting. I appreciate his response to this request and the positive way in which he has stated it. It is critical that there are no further delays. Everybody accepts that we are where we are. People would like an explanation as to why we are where we are and I believe they do not feel they have had that explanation yet.

I shall conclude by reading the two last paragraphs of the letter I read out earlier:

As a parent of four young children, two already in primary cycle, I now have the worry of whether the school will be able to take my children in when their time comes or will I have to send them to a different school outside of our community. It would be a crying shame if I had to do that.

Our secondary school must be finished as soon as possible. It is already nearly three years late being competed. I understand why projects like this might run to some delay but at this stage there are no words for a delay of this length.

The end of 2019 is just not good enough but we understand that we are where we are. I again appeal to the Minister to ensure that there will be no further delays. The parents would appreciate an fact-to-face meeting with the Minister to allay their fears that there will not be further delays and that further damage to the school's reputation will not occur. There is an excellent ethos in the school. It has excellent teachers - many of whom I met the other night - who are really committed to the school and excited by the possibility of this new growing community that has sprung out of a very ancient village that has been in existence since the fifth century.