Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Question 62: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if her attention has been drawn to the fact that local authority charges have risen by 104% since 2002 and that this is having an adverse affect on the budgets of the voluntary secondary schools sector as the schools are now required by their local authority to pay domestic refuse disposal and water charges; the steps she could take to increase the allocation of funds to the voluntary secondary schools sector in order to assist it in meeting this increased charge; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33427/07]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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Secondary schools receive funding by way of per capita grants, to meet their day-to-day running costs, including refuse and water charges. The value of the capitation grants have improved significantly over the past few years and are set to increase again by €15 to €331 per pupil in 2008. In addition, voluntary secondary schools will benefit by an increase of €15 in the support services grant, bringing that grant to €204 per pupil.

The total increase of €30 per pupil in a voluntary secondary school will bring the aggregate grant to €535 per pupil. The Deputy should be aware that these grants are in addition to the per capita funding, of up to €40,000 per school, that is also provided by my Department to secondary schools towards secretarial and caretaking services. Accordingly, in the case of a secondary school with 500 pupils, the annual grants towards general expenses and support service will be more than €300,000 in 2008. This represents an increase of 92% approximately since 2000. These significant increases are a clear demonstration of my commitment to prioritise available resources to address their needs.

The Deputy will be aware of the commitment in the Programme for Government to examine how local authorities might grant allow schools a reasonable level of usage of water and waste services without charge, and that charges would only apply when a school exceeded the allowance. The Deputy will appreciate that it is a primarily a matter for my colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, to determine precisely how this commitment will be implemented. A key consideration from my perspective is to ensure that any proposed scheme ensures that schools are treated consistently across the country. My Department will of course input to and support the examination to be conducted by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

The Deputy should note that my Department is to the forefront of design with respect to energy efficiency in school buildings, including measures to conserve water in schools. Typically these involve the use of low-pressure spray taps on wash hand basins rather than the traditional type taps. Dual type flushing units are provided on individual toilets. Where showers are provided, push button type shower controls are used to conserve water usage. Given the scale of my Department's school building programme in recent years many schools have already benefited from these energy saving measures. In addition, my Department has undertaken initial studies into the feasibility of recycling rainwater in schools and the viability of grey-water recycling continues to be kept under review. The performance of my Department in relation to low energy design has been recognised at both national and international level with sustainable energy awards for excellence in design and specification.