Máire Devine (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I second Senator Warfield's amendment to the Order of Business.

A media report today looks at the increase of primary school children enrolling in Catholic primary schools. I have brought this issue up as a Commencement matter with regard to our local Educate Together primary school at Canal Way in Dublin 8. The headlines would have people believe that parents are choosing to enrol their children in Catholic primary schools. It is, unfortunately, because a cap has been put on Educate Together schools. Parents have no choice. My Commencement matter for the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Bruton, was about the issue of choice, albeit for an individual school in Basin Lane.However, the issue is not just local, but national. The cap has been placed on all developing schools throughout the country. I know of at least six or seven of them and parents have no option but to send their children to the Catholic school. Some 96% of our primary schools are run by the Catholic orders.

I would like the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Bruton, to attend the Chamber so that we can find out how we will accommodate the increasing and overwhelming demand from parents for their children to be educated in an Educate Together school where the ethos is that of a learning centre that values democracy for parents, pupils, teachers and the boards. I would like him to respond to how we will progress this divestment from the church to our primary schools and the plans in place, because this has been an issue for a number of years.

Canal Way Educate Together national school was given a ten-year lease and six years remain on it but it is not allowed to do any repairs even though the school is practically falling down. The church still has a hold over those buildings. Eighteen years ago I was involved in setting up of the first Educate Together school on the South Circular Road at Griffith Barracks. This was very successful even if they were tough times. We got it from the OPW and not the religious orders. I would like to see more of those schools meet the demand of parents for an all-encompassing education.