Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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I will start by congratulating the Minister for Education and Skills on her appointment. During one of our last Adjournment debates in the House when she was a Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, I predicted that she would be promoted to the Cabinet. She got good news and I hope she will return the favour-----

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I hold Senator Byrne personally responsible.

Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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-----and give me good news today.

Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)
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The Senator is expecting a favourable response.

Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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I am hopeful of a favourable response from the Minister who is doing very well in her job so far. I wish her every success in her role, which is a very important portfolio.

I was contacted recently by my party colleague, Councillor Damien O'Reilly, who has met parents and the board of management of St. Peter's national school in Dunboyne, a relatively new school which has been in temporary accommodation on a temporary site for quite some time. The Minister is aware of the details of this case and it is long past time for this school to get a permanent building. The school has done tremendous work in the area and is unique in terms of its establishment in modern times. Having discussed this matter with the Minister previously, I know she is positively disposed and I look forward to her response.

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I thank the Senator for raising this matter. St. Peter's national school, Dunboyne, County Meath, is an English-medium, co­educational school under the patronage of the Church of Ireland Bishop of Meath and Kildare. The school is located in prefabricated accommodation on a temporary site. The Department has been made aware that this site has recently become restricted due to construction work under way on part of the land adjacent to where the temporary school is located. The process of acquiring a site for permanent accommodation for St. Peter's national school is under way.

A possible site option was identified and assessment of this site by members of the Department's technical and professional staff deemed it suitable for development of permanent accommodation for the school. Further to the technical assessment, Department officials commenced negotiations to acquire the site and these negotiations are ongoing. Due to the commercial sensitivities associated with land acquisitions generally, it is not possible to provide further information at this time. Officials from my Department have been in contact with the relevant school authorities to keep them apprised of the status of the acquisition process. When the site has been acquired, the Department will be in a position to progress the school project concerned to the architectural planning stage.

I assure the Senator that officials from my Department are aware of the current situation with regard to the temporary site and the need to acquire a site for permanent accommodation as soon as possible and are working hard to achieve this. I thank Senator Byrne for giving me the opportunity to outline the current position regarding St. Peter's national school.

Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for her reply and am glad to hear that substantial work is going on regarding this school. I fully appreciate and understand the commercial sensitivities surrounding land acquisition and believe that politicians should avoid discussing that issue in the context of schools.

The Minister appreciates the urgency of this matter. The school is under the patronage of the Church of Ireland and is the only such school to have opened in recent times, as I understand it. It performs a very important role. Many of the schools in the area have been provided with new buildings and new accommodation, although I am not suggesting that everything is perfect in County Meath. While I would not go so far as to say that St Peter's has been left behind, it has not been the prime focus of the Department in the context of south County Meath. I would like to see the Minister give the school the focus it deserves and I am confident she will do so. I look forward to progress being made. I hope that by raising this matter in the Seanad, I can help to move matters along. I am aware that some of my party colleagues intend to raise the issue in the Dáil and that Councillor Damien O'Reilly will be raising it at local and national level.

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I again assure Senator Byrne that we are very much aware that there is a particular issue with the current site and that we need to move on this as quickly as possible. I appreciate the fact the Senator accepts that I cannot give him details regarding the land acquisition process. I share his view that politicians should stay away from that element of it but I assure him that we recognise the urgency of this case.