Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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248. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the school staffing measures announced in his Department's budget for 2019 (details supplied). [43204/18]

Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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Budget 2019 will see numbers employed in our schools reach the highest ever level. Over 1,300 additional posts in schools will be funded, including more than 370 teaching posts and 950 additional SNA posts to cater for growth in student population and additional special classes. This builds on the Budget 2018 measure which provided a one point improvement in the staffing schedule in primary schools which brings the position to the most favourable ever seen at primary level.

The 2018/19 school year saw an increase of over 6000 teaching posts in our schools compared to the 2015/16 school year.  

The latest figures in relation to pupil teacher ratios show an improved ratio of teachers to students from 16:1 to 15.3:1 at primary level when comparing the 2015/16 school year to the 2017/18 school year.  Average class sizes at primary level improved from 24.9 to 24.5 in the same period.

Budget 2019 marks the third year of a major reinvestment in the education sector, as we continue to implement the Action Plan for Education, our plan to make Ireland's education and training service the best in Europe by 2026. In 2019, the budget for the Department of Education and Skills will increase by €674 million, a 6.7% increase on last year. This will bring Government expenditure on education and skills to its highest ever level of nearly €10.8 billion.

Over the three Budgets encompassed by the Action Plan for Education 2016-2019, annual investment in education will have risen by €1.7 billion, an increase of over 18% on 2016 levels. This reflects the government's commitment  to delivering on our plan to have the best education and training service in Europe.

The Statistics Section of my Department's website contains extensive data in relation to our schools including pupil teacher ratio's and teacher numbers. The most recent published information relates to the 2017/2018 school year. 

Any additional increase in the teacher numbers has to be considered as part of future budgetary processes, alongside the many other demands from the education sector.