Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Labour) | Oireachtas source

Yes. I thank the Cathaoirleach. I also thank the Government for accepting the Bill and the Minister for her positive speech and her engagement, which has been a delight. I appreciate the comments of those Senators from Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin who have contributed on the debate.I want to put on the record of the House my appreciation to Tony McGillicuddy who penned the Bill. Approximately five years ago I tried to introduce it as a back bench Labour Party Deputy but it went into a raffle that I did not win. I then became a Minister of State and was unable to pursue it further. In any event, I thank the Minister for taking it on.

It is an important issue and I appreciate the comments made by other Senators. Regardless of the cut and thrust of these Houses, there are vulnerable children who need our support for whom small measures can last a lifetime. If, as a result of the Bill, one family engages in a positive way with Tusla and corrects the attendance issues of a child in school, we will have done good work today. It will affect more than just one family, however.

I also recognise the attendance of Noel Kelly. In a previous incarnation, he was very involved in the Preparing for Life scheme in Darndale that I referenced earlier. The scheme has changed countless numbers of lives in Dublin 17.

This Bill is part of a wider suite of measures that we need to discuss. Senator Ruane had an engaging conversation at the Joint Committee on Education and Skills on access at all levels of education. Campaigns were mentioned about trying to keep libraries open and have people think differently about education. Why is it that some people in our Republic, when asked to sign their charge sheet, will sign it with an X? It is because that is the only way they know to sign it. This happened early on in the person's life and was not changed in time so that this person would not have to sign the charge sheet with an X. That is the reality for too many people in our Republic.

Education is about empowerment and offering choice and different roads for people to take. Those roads should not be closed off at four or five years of age. As a former primary school principal, I know that it is not too late but it can be very difficult to change things at the age of four. Many teachers will say that they know by the child's demeanour that one four year old will have fewer challenges than another who might be sitting right beside him or her. It is upsetting to say that it is possibly too late for a four year old, and of course it is not too late for a four year old, but the damage that can be done to a child at that age can be difficult to reverse.

With the Bill we are trying to set positive patterns of attendance at the earliest age of a child's school life. There will be conversations about whether a child belongs in a formal school setting at four years of age and the Minister referred to that in her contribution. I appreciate her observations in that regard. Given the positive mindset she has brought to her Department and to the Bill, however, I think that this can be one of a suite of measures that we, on a cross-party basis, can introduce to try to improve the educational outcomes of the most vulnerable children in our Republic.

I appreciate the Minister's attendance in the House and her acceptance of the Bill as well as all the comments made across the Chamber. I look forward to progressing the Bill and seeing it enacted in the not too distant future.