Garret Ahearn (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I also express my condolences to the British people, the ambassador, H.E. Paul Johnston and everyone who is grieving the Queen’s loss.

I ask that we have a debate on school transport and the challenges we have had in respect children who have not been able to get school buses over the past number of weeks. I have been inundated in County Tipperary with calls from parents whose children have been getting the bus for a number of years and, because of an increased demand, have not been able to get on it this year. In particular, I refer to the bus route between Drangan and Ballingarry. My colleague, Councillor Mark Fitzgerald, is dealing with an awful lot of parents there who have still have not gotten any answers. We keep going back to tell them that we think a decision will be made sometime soon.It is infuriating for them. I know of one person who only needs a seat on a school bus for the journey home on Wednesday afternoons. On nine of the journeys a week that seat is free. It is incredibly frustrating for people who genuinely need the bus twice a day five days a week. Certainly the view out there is that this has happened because of the decisions the Government made. I am not sure this is entirely true but we need to make sure the issues facing people who are genuinely struggling and have had to make changes to their work or employment over recent weeks, which they did not expect to have to do, can be sorted as quickly as possible. On the route I am speaking about, Drangan and Ballingarry, the issue is a very simple one. Kavanagh's bus company has a bus ready to go to bring all of the children. All we need is for it to be signed off by the Minister.