Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)
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I wish to share time with Senator Doherty.

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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Is that agreed? Agreed.

Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)
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Tá mé féin agus mo chomhghleacaí, an tSeanadóir Ó Dochairtaigh, ag tógáil an ábhar seo maidir le halla spóirt a chur ar fáil do Phobalscoil Gaoth Dobhair. Bunaíodh an scoil i 1973 nuair a cónascadh Ard Scoil Mhuire i Machaire Chlochair agus an ghairmscoil i Sráth na Corcra. Bhí an phobalscoil á reachtáil idir an dhá fhoirgneamh go 1980 nuair a tógadh scoil úr ar shuíomh nua ar an Luinnigh. Osclaíodh an scoil sin ar 3 Bealtaine 1982.

Freastalaíonn an scoil ar pharóiste Ghaoth Dobhair agus ar íochtar na Rosann. Ar ndóigh, is pobalscoil lán-Ghaeilge é. Tá an scoil ag dul ó neart go neart ag cur chun cinn réimse leathan cúrsaí oideachais trí mheán na Gaeilge, réimse leathan spóirt agus cúrsaí cultúrtha. Faoi láthair tá 322 dalta ag freastal ar an scoil. Tuigim gur iar-dhalta den scoil é an tSeanadóir Ó Dochartaigh.

I and Senator Doherty wish to raise the urgent need for the provision of a physical education hall at Pobalscoil Gaoth Dobhair, County Donegal, to proceed without delay. In 1985, the school's board of management was assured by the then Minister for Education that the project would proceed. In June 2006, some 21 years later, the go-ahead for planning, tender and construction of the hall was granted.

The parents' council has raised concerns, however, that the sports hall is not progressing as planned and may be removed from the Department's priority list. That would be an alarming scenario. The availability of physical education is a necessity to young people, especially teenagers given the growing incidence of obesity. It is important the school curriculum contains a daily physical education element. While I appreciate the Minister, Deputy Gormley, is not the line Minister, I know he will use his good office to impress our concerns on the Minister for Education and Science.

As I mentioned, there are 322 pupils attending the school, of which 165 are female and 157 are male. Those pupils deserve the right to physical education and they live in an area in Donegal where the weather is not as good, perhaps, as in other parts of the country. That is the reason it is so important to have an indoor physical education facility.

I understand there is a community dimension attached to the project as well, which is very welcome as the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs is providing counter-funding to the Department of Education and Science to allow the facility proceed.

We are seeking an update today as the people from the area, the parents, the parents council, the teachers and pupils want this project to proceed. I am impressing today the urgency of allowing the project to proceed to tender and construction without delay. I hope this can occur in the very near future.

I thank the Minister for his commitment to Seanad Éireann this week. While others are abroad, the Minister, Deputy Gormley, is certainly looking after the home patch.

Pearse Doherty (Sinn Fein)
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Is ceist tábhachtach an cheist seo, agus tá sé tábhachtach freisin gur chuir Seanadóir ó thaobh an Rialtais an ábhar seo ar an athló. Tá muintir Gaoth Dobhair ag iarraidh go rachaidh an halla spóirt seo ar aghaidh gan mhoill.

As has been already mentioned, this goes back to the early 1980s. I can remember being in primary school when past pupils of Bunbeg national school came to our school and told us they were pupils of Pobalscoil Gaoth Dobhair and that it would be great when we would go because the sports hall would be constructed. Guarantees had been given in the Dáil as far back as the early 1980s by, at that time, Fine Gael Ministers. They were repeated by Fianna Fáil Ministers. That is 20 years ago, I left Pobalscoil Gaoth Dobhair 11 years ago but there is still no gym in the area.

There is huge frustration in Gaoth Dobhair that Pobalscoil Gaoth Dobhair has never had the gym promised to it well over 20 years ago. There are schools right across the country with such PE facilities because it is part of the curriculum. This issue also concerns other factors which have been mentioned, such as obesity. There is a financial aspect as well, as the pobalscoil has to bus pupils here, there and everywhere to avail of community facilities, such as the GAA pitch or venues for basketball or other sports.

I know the Minister would be very concerned about that and we spoke yesterday about proper design and planning. It does not make sense for us to bus hundreds of students a couple of miles every year to avail of facilities which should be on-site.

There has been progress on commitments to the sports hall. It was given the go-ahead in June 2006 and again in May 2007, and funding has been committed by the Department of Education and Science and the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. The school itself also had to raise money. A letter was given to the board of management in May which stated the project would be on-site no later than eight months from the sending of the letter. That would mean the project should have been on-site in January.

The problem is there have been a number of obstacles to it being put to tender and construction, centering on the mechanical and electrical design. On five different occasions, the Department has rejected the designs coming forward. That does not make sense because the Department appointed the contractor itself. It has been rejected because of 16 points, 28 points and 34 points; it seems the goalposts are being moved time and again. When it was rejected in December on the grounds of electrical and mechanical design, the problems were not stated. Every other part of it has been approved.

I share the serious concerns that the Department is now trying to put this project on the long finger. The Minister mentioned in a speech, given to him to deliver by the Department of Education and Science, that the main emphasis in 2008 is to provide sufficient school places in developing areas. We know the Minister has repeated that time and again. The fear in Gaoth Dobhair now is that the Department is moving the goalposts and using the mechanical and electrical designs to hold back this project and that that funding is being directed into the areas around Dublin where the population is expanding. Will the Minister address the points I have raised and obtain from the Department clarification on the nature of the stumbling block that exists in respect of this issue?

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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I thank the Senators for raising this matter because it provides me with the opportunity to outline to the Seanad the Government's strategy for capital investment in education projects and to indicate the current position in respect of the provision of a PE hall at Pobalscoil Gaoth Dobhair. It appears that Senator Doherty has already seen my reply but I will read it into the record in any event.

Modernising facilities in our 3,200 primary and 731 post-primary schools is not an easy task given the legacy of decades of under-investment in this area as well as the need to respond to emerging needs in areas of rapid population growth. None the less, the Government has shown a consistent determination to improve the condition of our school buildings and to ensure the appropriate facilities are in place to enable the implementation of a broad and balanced curriculum.

The Government has dramatically increased investment in the schools building programme from slightly in excess of €90 million in 1997 to almost €600 million this year. Under the lifetime of the national development plan almost €4.5 billion will be invested in schools. This is an unprecedented level of capital investment which reflects the commitment of the Government to continue its programme of sustained investment in primary and post-primary schools.

With regard to sports in our schools, the PE curricula at primary and post-primary level have been developed on the understanding that facilities available to schools vary. Consequently, they offer a level of flexibility that allows each school to tailor its programme to the facilities available. Within available resources and overall published criteria for prioritising projects, it is the policy of the Department of Education and Science to provide post-primary schools with PE halls where no such facility exists. This is considered as part of the design brief for new schools and for major renovation or extension projects.

The number of schools with general purpose rooms and PE halls is increasing all the time, while practically all schools have outside exercise space. In addition, many schools use adjacent local facilities, including public parks, playing fields and swimming pools. Considering the facilities schools have on site is just part of the picture because they also may have access to excellent local sports facilities, which have been greatly expanded and improved in recent years through funding from the Government's sports capital programme.

Pobalscoil Gaoth Dobhair is a co-educational facility with an enrolment of some 300 students. I am pleased to inform the Senators that a PE hall of 630 sq. m. is being provided for this school and that the project has reached the advanced stages of architectural planning. The project is being co-funded by the Departments of Education and Science and Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. While it is not possible as a result of higher competing priorities — I refer in particular to the need to provide new schools in rapidly developing areas — to be precise regarding when this project will go to construction, it will be considered for progression on an ongoing basis as the school building and modernisation programme is rolled out. As stated, the latter is being underpinned by an investment €4.5 billion under the national development plan.

I again thank the Senators for raising this matter. I assure them the Government is acutely aware of the need to ensure all our schools have adequate sports facilities. Such facilities will be put in place over time.

Pearse Doherty (Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister for his response. To tell the truth, I am shocked just reading it. The parents' committee and the board of management received an official letter from the Department confirming that the sports hall was approved and should be on site within eight months, but there was a caveat that it could not go to tender until the mechanical and electrical designs had been approved. However, what we have been told by the Department in this reply is that it cannot be precise about when the project will go to construction because of higher competing priorities. This has realised our greatest fears. The project is now in the mix with all other projects and the commitments that were given to the school as recently as May 2007 are null and void. I am deeply shocked. I know this is not Deputy Gormley's portfolio but I ask him to pass on our serious concerns to the Minister for Education and Science.

Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)
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I share Senator Doherty's concern that the final go-ahead for construction appears to be in question. I ask the Minister to use his good offices to convey our concerns to the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Hanafin. I will also raise the matter on a personal basis with the Minister in the near future.