Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday I attended the PDFORRA conference. The Leader will agree with me that it is regrettable that a number of members representing Naval Service personnel were refused permission to attend the conference. It flies in the face of any notion of decent working relationships.Later this afternoon, a group of parents in Cork will hold a press conference on the misappropriation of Exchequer funds in education. It is a serious case that has been ongoing for some time. The Leader, as a former teacher, will have some concerns himself on the matter. Anecdotally, we are aware that restrictions on promotional posts and appointments in education mean principals, with whom I have some sympathy, have been put to the pins of their collars trying to manage their schools. Unfortunately, in trying to do so, pupils with special education needs who have been allocated, say, four hours of one-to-one teaching a week have been put together in a single class. Principals have been amalgamating the hours so that they can be used elsewhere for management purposes and so on. The Teachers' Union of Ireland, TUI, my former union, spent much time at its conference complaining about the lack of resources and management structures in schools. The Cork parents have documentary evidence with names, students, times, places and schools, where hours allocated by the Department of Education and Skills were taken from the students and misused. The Minister for Education and Skills should come before the House as a matter of urgency to discuss this and the protocols are in place.

I do not want a witch hunt of principals around the country who may have been involved in this practice. It is deeply regrettable that it is coming to light as it will later but we need to take action on it.