Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 416: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the mechanisms that exist in her Department to alert her to upcoming school accommodation requirements arising from population trends before such requirements become a necessity and with a view to engaging in adequate forward planning to ensure a streamlined provision of accommodation as required, as opposed to the present system; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28763/07]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The general process of assessing and planning for the need for additional provision at primary or post-primary level in any given area entails consideration of all relevant factors, including enrolment and demographic trends, housing and other developments and the capacity of existing schools to meet the demand for places. Local Authorities are obliged by statute to refer draft local area development plans to the Department for observation and comment so that lands can be zoned for future education use. There are numerous sites reserved for education purposes under this process particularly in rapidly developing areas. Once subsequent residential planning permissions are consistent with these plans, the focus for the Department is one of collaboration with the local authority to ensure that the lands set aside for educational provision can be acquired and developed as they are needed.

To deal with this increasing demand for school places, the Government is providing funding of €4.5 billion over the lifetime of the new National Development Plan (NDP). This will be the largest investment programme in schools in the history of the State and it will enable my Department to ensure that school places are available where needed as well as continuing to upgrade existing school facilities. This investment will allow my Department to continue the school building programme which commenced during the life time of the last NDP when well over €2.6 billion was invested in school development, delivering over 7,800 projects.

The budget for 2007 is the first year of the roll out of the new NDP. This funding will enable my Department to continue to provide modern school accommodation on an on-going basis, particularly in developing areas. This year alone around over €540 million will be spent on school building infrastructure with over 1,500 projects on my Department's school building programme. Construction in 2007 alone will deliver over 700 classrooms to provide permanent accommodation for over 17,500 pupils, mainly in developing areas.