Mary Seery Kearney (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am at a loss to know how the statistics and the population levels from the CSO are so at variance with the predictions from the Department of Education because, with all due respect, I would dispute the paragraph of the Minister of State's speech which states that the population is going to reduce from 2031 thereafter. The provision of that school in Sandymount - this is something we need to be clear about - is around the fact that 47% of the households in Dublin 8 have no car compared to an average of 13%. It is not within walking distance of the Dublin 8 area and the bus services there and back take an average of 64 to 90 minutes in travel time. All of that is ridiculous. There should be a greater plan. There is the Dublin Institute of Technology, DIT, campus and it would be an ideal location for a school. A new Educate Together primary school was opened in 2018 which was fantastic. If there was a need for a primary school, there is definitely a need for the follow-on of a secondary school.