Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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374. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if her Department has considered the implications of the recent Medical Emergency Response (MER) report, which shows that only 43.2% of schools have a defibrillator on site, particularly in the context of school sports where cardiac events can occur; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65394/25]

Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein)
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375. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the measures in place to ensure that schools hosting sports activities, training sessions, and matches are adequately equipped to respond to sudden medical emergencies, including the availability of defibrillators and staff trained in their use; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65395/25]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 374 and 375 together.

Under the provisions of the Education Act 1998, the Board of Management is the body charged with the direct governance of a school.

The decision to install a defibrillator is made at local school level and is a matter for the board of management of each individual school.

The wider question of the need for defibrillators to be made available in public places is primarily a public health matter and would therefore be a matter for the Department of Health.