Marie Sherlock (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I reiterate that we all share the view that the first priority has to the needs of the school population and community. This is not in doubt. Earlier this year, in response to a parliamentary question, the Minister said the review was to commence in the third quarter of this year. We now hear about a survey in the first quarter of 2023 but we do not hear when we will see completion of the review. We do not hear anything about public consultation on this. Surely the public and local communities will be given an opportunity to have a say.

Notwithstanding the commitment to try to address some of the insurance and security concerns of boards of management, and many of them are genuine and legitimate, there is a failure by the Department to recognise it has a role in maximising the use of its public investment in school buildings. This is what we are speaking about. The State invests a great deal into school buildings but we see only a limited or partial return because the school buildings are closed for so many hours of the day and during the summer.