Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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158. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which new primary and second level teaching posts have been approved in respect of primary and second level schools throughout the country; the extent to which this is expected to favourably impact teaching conditions in the schools in question; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25006/17]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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167. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the extent to which the pupil-teacher ratio at primary and second level throughout the country is a matter of concern; the extent to which he expects to be in a position to improve the situation in the future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25015/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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Budget 2016 provided for an improvement in the staffing schedule in primary schools by 1 point, from 1 teacher for every 28 pupils to 1 teacher for every 27 pupils for the 2016/17 school year and it should be noted that the current staffing schedule of 27:1 for primary schools has restored it to the position it was at prior to the fiscal crisis.

The Programme for Government has a commitment to reduce class sizes at primary level and it is my intention to make further improvements to class sizes over the life of the Government.

My focus in Budget 2017 was on obtaining additional funding to provide for demographic growth, and additional special education and school leadership resources for our schools.

Budget 2017 sets out the resources available for schools in the 2017/18 school year. This Budget represents the start of a major reinvestment in education, and the first phase of implementation of the Action Plan for Education, aimed at becoming the best education system in Europe within a decade. The budget provides for over 2,400 additional teaching posts for our primary and post-primary schools in the coming school year.

The 2017/18 school year will see a significant increase in teacher numbers (almost 4,700) in our schools compared to the 2015/16 school year.