Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

When this policy came in, other teachers who had been in the system for 15 years had to go back into the school room, and support was provided for the transition. Many of the directors have been in post for ten and sometimes 15 or 20 years. I do not think that is at all in accord with a secondment policy. Secondment is, by its nature, temporary. These are year-on-year renewals. We are willing to allow a second term where someone has returned to the classroom for a period and then comes back again, and I think that is quite acceptable. However, the idea that, effectively, we keep rolling on those who are there, and that what is designed as temporary becomes permanent by lack of ever intervening, is not a good way to manage this. We believe that having this renewal within the directors is the right policy. It has worked and we are getting very good people to come in and out, and to go back and enrich the school.

While I understand that people do not like disruption in their lives and so on, and would like a temporary secondment to become forever, that was never intended and we never made any such commitment. We will try to be flexible with the people involved. We have given extensions but we have reached the point where we have to have a policy that is workable and gives us the capacity, as a Department, to plan and execute what is a really important area of departmental work.