Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I listened to the Minister of State's reply. I appreciate that the intention of the Department is to promote integration. I believe in that and look forward to the day when we have more Travellers in the teaching profession and as role models in the educational sphere. My fear is that in years to come, there will be three, four, five or six young men who will point to the closure of the school as the reason they do not have a leaving certificate. Tusla and the Department will do their best to help these students transition to another mainstream setting but my fear is that for the want of a bit of leeway - a year or two - in allowing the students to stay in their current setting, the educational system could lose them completely. I again ask the Minister of State to pass on my concerns to the Minister and the Department about these young men, the danger presented by the immediate closure of the school and the message that sends to them. Nobody is arguing - I certainly do not - that Traveller-only schools or educational settings are the way to go. They are not. They are not healthy or progressive but I suggest that phasing in this closure is in the best interests of those young men, which must surely be our collective goal.