Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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148. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills her views on a matter (details supplied) regarding national schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21061/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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The majority of school buildings in the state are in private ownership and under denominational patronage. When state monies were provided to facilitate building works to school property owned by a third party, a legal mechanism had to be put in place in order to protect the State's interest. This was known as a Charging Lease or Declaration of Trust. These leases protect the Minister's capital investment in the school property and require that the property be used as a school for a set period.

As a result of negotiations in the late 1990s on the reconstitution of Boards of Management, an agreement was reached whereby patrons agreed to cede representatives on the Boards of Management in lieu of the Department agreeing to insert a Deed of Variation into the existing property lease. The objective of this Deed of Variation is to provide security for the denominational ethos of a school in cases where a patron or trustee owns the property. Discussions have taken place with the relevant patron bodies over the years to obtain a mutually acceptable solution which meets this objective and these discussions are ongoing.

The Deed of Variation refers to a change in the terms of a charging lease or Declaration of Trust. With regard to admission policies, irrespective of property or Charging Lease arrangements, it is the responsibility of the managerial authorities of all schools to implement an enrolment policy in accordance with the Education Act, 1998. The enrolment policy must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants.

The Equal Status Act, 2000 provides that an educational establishment does not discriminate where the establishment is a school providing primary or post-primary education to students and the objective of the school is to provide education in an environment which promotes certain religious values, it admits persons of a particular religious denomination in preference to others or it refuses to admit as a student a person who is not of that denomination and, in the case of a refusal, it is proved that the refusal is essential to maintain the ethos of the school.

Article 44.2.4 of the Constitution states that legislation providing State aid for schools shall not discriminate between schools under the management of different religious denominations, nor be such as to affect prejudicially the right of any child to attend a school receiving public money without attending religious instruction at that school. In this regard, Section 30 of the Education Act (1998), provides that no student can be required to attend instruction in any subject which is contrary to the conscience of the parent of the student. Therefore, parents have the right, if so desired, to ensure that their children do not receive religious instruction.

The objective of the recently published Education (Admission to Schools) Bill is to provide an over-arching framework to ensure that how schools decide on who is enrolled and who is refused a place in schools is more structured, fair and transparent.

The Bill does not propose changes to the existing equality legislation. The Bill, while including provision for single sex schools and denominational schools to reflect in their admission policy the exemptions applicable to such schools under equality legislation, requires schools to explicitly state in the school's admission policy that it will not discriminate against an applicant for admission on the grounds of disability, special educational needs, sexual orientation, family status, membership of the traveller community, race, civil status, gender or religion. The Bill also requires schools to publish an enrolment policy which will include details of the school's arrangements for students who do not want to attend religious instruction.