Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish to raise the issue of education this morning. I got a note from the local school on Wednesday telling me that our two children would be spending the following day at mass. There are two big religions in my household, Limerick hurling and Tottenham Hotspur, although not necessarily in that order, but we do not practise any other religion. In fairness to the school when I wrote to it, our children were allowed not to have to spend the day in the church, and I was pleased with that.

However, it brings to mind the Education (Admission to Schools) Bill the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Bruton, is currently pursuing. It does purport to end the baptism barrier, which I welcome, but I must ask the question, given the diverse nature of our country in 2017, because even by Fine Gael standards the Bill is particularly conservative.