Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Ba mhaith liom fáilte a chur roimh an Aire Stáit inniu. He is very welcome to the House this afternoon to discuss this very important issue. I am heartened by his comments and his commonsense approach to this issue. We are all at one in singing the praises of this scheme. That is taken as a given. The merits of the scheme are well known. Unfortunately, there are issues with it, some of which the Minister of State outlined today. I am a member of the Joint Committee on Education and Skills. We held a discussion on this issue yesterday, at which a number of stakeholders appeared before the committee to outline their concerns and issues in respect of the scheme's administration. It was very worthwhile. What I took from it was that we have a lot in common in respect of this issue. We all want to ensure every child gets to school and that no child is left standing along the road. There are a number of issues which probably need a little bit of tweaking.

This is my first year as a Senator. When I came back here in September of last year, it was absolute mayhem. I am sure it was the same for every Member of both Houses. There was a lot of confusion among families because children were being left behind. There seemed to be very little co-ordination in respect of the entire set-up. The Minister of State undertook a review of the school transport system at the time. I am sure he received many representations. He lives in a rural constituency and I am sure he is not immune to the issues which affect us. That review took place but unfortunately nothing has come out of it, as far as I can see. I hope I will be proved wrong in that regard and that when we come back here September there will not be the same problems which we discovered last September.

Some issues with the scheme arose from the meeting with stakeholders yesterday and I will touch on a number of them briefly. The first is in respect of the concessionary issue whereby a child could be left behind. It is disappointing that there seems to be very little leeway and that the administration of the scheme is very straitjacketed. When appeals are made it seems to be a kind of a fait accompli. There is very little movement from the Department's side in respect of appeals. That issue arose from the representations which we received yesterday and it is definitely an area which needs to be looked at. The other area which came up yesterday in respect of the concessionary seats was around people with medical cards. There is an anomaly whereby, in the school transport scheme at the moment, vulnerable families with medical cards have to pay for concessionary school transport. Perhaps that is something the Minister of State might look at for us.

We also heard a presentation which touched on the area of special needs. The Minister of State outlined that some great work has been done in that respect, and there is no doubt about that. The witnesses touched on a number of issues yesterday. One lady described how a child had a bus journey of more than two hours. That is very disappointing. Perhaps there are issues to examine in terms of routes. That is also something the Minister of State could look into. They also touched on the issue of the buses themselves, some of which are not wheelchair accessible. That is also an issue the Minister of State might bring on board. This witness also touched on ensuring that the drivers of these buses are especially sensitive to the any special needs children might have and that they are conscious of, and experienced in, handling situations which might arise on the bus.

The other issue was route reviews. A question about how often a route is reviewed by the Department was asked yesterday. The answer we heard was slightly vague. It basically said that they were reviewed on an ongoing basis but we were not sure whether that meant every one year, every two years, every five years or whatever. I know of a case in County Monaghan, where I live, where it has been more ten years since a route was reviewed. The family situation in that area has changed quite dramatically, as I am sure the Minister of State can appreciate. Perhaps that issue of reviews is also something he could take on.

I fully accept it is a good system but there are issues that need to be looked at. Based on the presentations we heard yesterday at the committee and the contributions which I am sure the Minister of State will hear today, I trust he will take those issues on board and that when we come back here in September, there will not be absolute mayhem again. I hope it will be calmer this year and that we will have learned from the mistakes of last year so that things will run a bit more smoothly for all concerned.