Albert Dolan
Galway East · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“The Tánaiste will be well aware of the case of Carrabane National School in east Galway. I have no doubt that multiple representations have been made to him about it. While I do not expect him to have an answer today as to what the case is, I want to highlight the frustration that exists among the school community.”
“Those are people who were not already in a pension, who were working hard and earning money but who were not contributing to their future retirement and now they are auto-enrolled into a pension. You would have to ask if they know what they are a part of. Do they know the potential of it?”
“I would say that we need to be careful. I welcome the Grow Digital vouchers, but this would lead to businesses depending on those vouchers to get the expertise and skills to be talented with AI. The whole idea of AI is that it is going to be usable by anybody for anybody with their own critical thinking and their own ability.”
“This is something that I am very passionate about. It is something that affects us all. It is about financial literacy: understanding how a mortgage works, understanding how contributions to a pension can compound, understanding how people can better manage their own financial situations individually and, ultimately, understanding how peo…”
“Go raibh maith agat a Aire Stáit. I appreciate the update and the work that is ongoing. A key area I want to highlight, and I know the Minister of State is hearing this regularly, is energy costs.”
“I really appreciate the Minister of State's engagement on this issue. I welcome the response from the Minister, Deputy Naughton, and the financial literacy framework and directive that are in place. I know about that because I experienced it when I was in secondary school.”
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“It has been a huge quality of life enhancement for them. This was a temporary funded service until the end of July 2026, so we still have an opportunity to get this right. The service is not gone yet. The decision is with the National Transport Authority, NTA, to make around funding. I am sure the Minister of State knows this from his constituency, but the reality is that there is no available rolling stock in Irish Rail. Where is this stock going to be moved to? We need to keep this as a commuter rail service for the people of Athenry. We are a growing town with a population in excess of 5,000. For the past 18 months, we have had no bus service, despite a public service obligation being in place.”
“There is growing concern in the town of Athenry in east Galway that a service that was introduced - the 6.50 a.m. train service from Athenry to Galway city - will be lost. In October 2025, this service was added as a temporary service in light of the works that were ongoing at Ceannt Station and Oranmore Station. As the Minister of State can imagine, there are many people who now rely on and benefit from this service, as there was no earlier service going into Galway city from Athenry. There are currently about 50 people availing of this service every day. I have been receiving messages and communications from people who are fearful that it will be lost and they will be forced back into their cars. They have been able to leave their cars in Athenry to commute on the train while avoiding traffic and getting to Galway city to work.”
“That was extremely complicated and complex and it ended up being handed to the accountants to do. It is critical that people are able to utilise this scheme and get it as smoothly as possible.”
“I welcome the intervention and the sizeable package that has been put in place, but it is like any scheme or package that was rolled out over the past few years. It is about how quickly a business can get this into its bank account to provide cashflow and liquidity so it can continue in business and get through a difficult and turbulent time. It is critical that the supports that are put in place now are through a streamlined process that is easy to draw down. Where I come from in east Galway, my family runs an accountancy firm and many of our clients are agri-contractors, small businesses and construction companies, and I see the hoops they have to jump through in trying to draw down many business schemes. I remember the temporary business energy support scheme, TBESS.”
“It is vital that as much intervention as possible is put in place to help these SMEs survive. What further interventions does the Government plan to make?”
“I want to make something abundantly clear and it is very important that I get this point across. Let us take someone in the agri-sector who is contracting day in, day out. If their machine is costing them an extra €200 a day to keep on the road, that amounts to a grand a week, which is over €50,000 a year. No business can survive that. That is why this intervention is absolutely critical. School bus operators are signed into a contract. They need to be supported. We are already having issues getting school bus drivers and operators. We need to ensure they are supported and they can survive and continue. This country runs a serious risk of seeing massive construction inflation if we cannot manage the costs facing both self-builders and those building our national infrastructure and other projects across the country.”
“Has the Department prepared any assessment of the recent rise in fuel prices and the impact it is having on small and medium businesses in agri-related sectors and the construction and transport sectors?”
“Policies of that nature will allow these villages to thrive and to grow and will encourage people to live in them, which would mean that there could be more services and greater support right across rural Ireland. Remote working hubs formed part of the previous Our Rural Future policy. Many of these hubs were established but were never given current funding to ensure that they were maintained or that they could employ managers. Every county should have a remote working hub manager who can manage all of the hubs in their county remotely. Those people could ensure that the hubs are kept going and are financially viable.”
“We need to take a common sense, practical approach to our rural planning that allows people to build close to home and beside their parents so that when care needs arise in a home, the family will be there to care for one another. That is something that is really important in rural Ireland as well. There are so many villages that are never going to be serviced or see a sewerage network, but they should not be choked because of that. They should not be stifled when it comes to development. People should be allowed to build homes in those villages. I welcome what the Minister, Deputy Browne, is doing with the developer-led wastewater treatment systems for projects of up to 40 units.”
“To get rid of rural isolation, we need to make sure our elderly people can access this service as well. Another thing that needs to be considered is how we are delivering housing in rural Ireland and where there are blockages. A significant issue I see is that young people are not able to build using shared entrances into national roads. That is a Transport Infrastructure Ireland, TII, problem and it is a roads problem but it is a priority for Our Rural Future because young people are being encouraged to go 6 km or 7 km down the road and build on a bóithrín, only to drive back and forth multiple times per day to tend to the farm at home. To be honest, that is absolute madness.”
“Particularly for Our Rural Future, I want to talk about rural transport because many people love rural Ireland because they can work, live and contribute there and it is vital they have transport to access labour in our towns, cities and in areas of high industrial activity. The way we will do that and make rural Ireland more connected is through an enhancement of investment in rural links and in the Local Link service. In east Galway, we have seen many Local Link services enhanced over the past few years and they have been an absolute game-changer. However, many areas remain without this service and that leaves people isolated and unconnected. People need to have that opportunity to avail of Local Link transport, not just for the sake of transport but for the sake of connection and community.”
“I welcome this discussion on the future of rural policy and on Our Rural Future. I welcome the opening and consideration of the consultation for same. It is so important people right across this country, whether they are in an urban or rural area, contribute to what they believe the future of rural Ireland should look like and that we reflect on the first phase of this plan in terms of what went right, what went wrong and how we can do better. In this House, and in many parliaments across the world, the question we always have to ask ourselves is: how can we do better? For rural Ireland there are a few key areas I believe we can really improve things and over the coming years use this policy as the document that guides everything we do to improve rural Ireland.”
“I raise with the Taoiseach the case of Carrabane National School in east Galway. This school is on the priority list for development, and we welcome that, but the prefabs at the school are falling apart. The tenders were received for this building in January 2024. We are now in April 2026 and the Department of education has not yet made a decision on whether it will proceed. Will the Taoiseach please engage with the Department of education to unblock whatever blockages are there and see that this school is built? The people of Carrabane and the surrounding area have waited long enough and they are crying out to see this school built once and for all. I will support the Taoiseach in any way I can to see it delivered but the Minister for education needs to make a decision. She needs to work with the principal officers to make a decision.”
“We have been speaking to many different representatives about the cost of doing business and just how expensive it is. This is something that is replicated across Europe. If we are to be competitive as a Continent and a Union, we need to make sure that we do not trip ourselves up. It really comes down to managing costs and ensuring that there can be success within the European Union, and that we do not become unattractive to people seeking to create jobs in our country. I am conscious of the time.”
“That is going to be a very difficult balance to find. Ireland's position in Europe is a very strong one when it comes to agriculture. We have a very strong history of food production and producing food in a sustainable manner. It is very important that when the CAP negotiations begin, Ireland defends food production and the ability of our own people to produce our own food. It is going to be so important that the CAP reflects the contribution European food producers make within the European Union. I also want to talk about an area where I feel the European Union is failing at the moment, namely, competitiveness and the cost of doing business. I am the spokesperson for enterprise and I also sit on the enterprise committee. We have been doing a body of work over the last six months to a year.”
“There needs to be a more concentrated effort there. We are a small nation, but we have an opportunity to engage with the European Union and see benefits from that as well. Energy security is absolutely critical. I welcome the announcements from the Commission about the AccelerateEU package. It is welcome that it is going to allow European states to take all the necessary actions to be able to protect ourselves against what is the largest oil shock in the history of the State. We have to be really careful there because we do not know how bad this can get. We do not know how expensive fuels and energy can become, so we really have to take every measure possible to, first, secure our own energy independence and then simultaneously ensure that we are able to negate any negative impact it could have on the economy.”
“When we talk about these statements post the European Council meeting, it is so important that we have a conversation about the positive role that Europe and being part of Europe can play in all our lives. We are yet to see many of the benefits that were envisaged in a European Union and from a trade perspective. We do not have an opportunity to deal with banks across Europe. We do not have an opportunity to deal with energy companies across Europe. We do not have an opportunity to deal with a whole range of trade opportunities that would ultimately benefit consumers and reduce costs right across Europe. We often talk here about the cost-of-living crisis and the impact it is having on people's ability to carry on with a normal life, but the European Union is the tool that can ultimately help reduce costs throughout the EU.”
“The third is to speed up the rate of which assessments take place so that supports can be unlocked and identified for those who need them. If we have not identified the need and not identified what is needed for people there, how can we ensure that they get the support they need?”
“We were asking the officials about why almost an extra €500 million would be spent trying to ensure that we meet the need that exists. I encourage the Department to spend as much money as possible in this domain. As a country, we are not going to regret spending this money. This is something for our children and future. It is something that I will fully support so long as I am a Deputy. There are three key priorities and focuses going forward for special education. The first is a guarantee of a school place for every child in the right school place and right setting that is fitting for the child. The second is a fast track for special classes. I compliment the Ministers. There are over 400 special classes set to open this year across the country. That is welcome. As the Ministers, all Deputies and I know, we need more.”
“It is something that I have raised with the Minister. Roisin and Peggy from Down Syndrome Galway had a fantastic meeting with the Minister. I wish to reiterate the issue that exists in that circular regarding the special speech and language disorder classes and having accessibility for everyone to them. I will use my two minutes - not that the Minister is not aware - as a reminder of how important the role of education, and particularly the role that special education, plays. I know the work the Minister and the Minister of State put in and how hard they are working to see every child in this country have an opportunity. We had the Department of Education and Youth before the Public Accounts Committee last week.”
“The Taoiseach's reply highlighted a number of priorities. One area of key focus is disability. The Cabinet committee on disability is going to try to push forward with the national rights strategy for disabled people 2025-30. One key area the Government needs to focus on is accessibility in our towns, particularly towns like Athenry, Tuam, Gort and Loughrea. These are towns in Galway East where, in the last year, we have seen progress toward greater accessibility, but we need to see more. What is the Department going to do to focus on accessibility around our towns so that everyone has an equal opportunity to experience our lived spaces?”
“Tomorrow we will all collectively celebrate Daffodil Day and we will support the Irish Cancer Society. I see many Members across the House donning the daffodil today. In Galway last year, 1,332 people were diagnosed with cancer and in 2024, sadly, 531 people died at the hands of this disease. One thing we in this House can do is try to alleviate some of the pressures people face when they are battling cancer. I want to ask a very simple question. Has this Government any plans to tackle the financial burdens that arise when somebody is diagnosed with cancer? What are the Government's plans to deal with same?”
“What has to happen is that the Government needs to assess the costs, see that this appears to be a sustained conflict, and examine and assess every option, such as whether tax measures or targeted measures would be the right response. For many households, there is simply no more room left. They have already cut back and cannot take another hit. The central point stands - we cannot stand by while working families in rural communities are hit again and again. This is about fairness and people need to know that, when the pressure seriously comes on, as it has been sustained over the past 19 days, the Government will take appropriate measures and actions.”
“We need to be abundantly clear here. Families across this country are under serious pressure and the fuel costs are a major part of that pressure. In Galway East and across rural Ireland, people do not have a choice. They rely on their cars every day to get to work, bring their children to school and keep their livelihoods going, and right now, they are being squeezed. When people are paying more than €100 to fill a tank of diesel, that it not just a number. It is money being taken from groceries, heating and, ultimately, supporting their families. People feel they are doing everything right and are still falling behind. I understand and accept that prices are set and influenced by global markets - we get it - but that cannot become an excuse for inaction.”
“We all have a shared ambition for women in Ireland to see them succeed and live fantastic lives of equality and opportunity but we need to move that from ambition to action and investment. I believe the focus must now be on delivery and measurable progress in people's lives. I hope the Minister of State can take on some of the matters I have raised.”
“It is important that we continue to invest in women's health and make it a priority, so women have better health outcomes. I want Ireland to be a leader in women's health and I think we can do that. Particularly as a man standing here, we need to call out some of the issues brought to my attention when it comes to violence against women, whether domestic, sexual or gender-based violence. It has to be met with stronger supports and laws. Ultimately it all comes down to culture and it is important to say that. There was a Netflix documentary aired last week called "Inside the Manosphere", about the negative impact those influencers are having on young men's attitudes towards women. That is also something that needs to be called out.”
“Whatever it takes to ensure that more women are elected to the Dáil needs to happen, because I firmly believe it would lead to greater representation for women in the Dáil. In the present Dáil, as in the previous one, there has been a massive emphasis on women's healthcare and making it a priority in terms of menopause care, contraception, maternity services and conditions like endometriosis. We need to continue investing more in those areas. My mother practices as a GP in rural County Galway. I have heard from her the impact some of the measures brought in by Government over the past few years have had on patients. That is really important. If we do not make these investments and if we fail our women, then we are failing as a society.”
“I will start by talking about the gender pay gap and the importance of trying, not just to resolve it, but to bring greater transparency around it. We know that over time the gender pay gap widens. The only way you can manage something like this is by measuring it and by having transparency. I implore the Minister of State to continue to work on this issue and to ensure that it gets the attention it needs and achieves the desired outcome of greater transparency and greater equality of outcomes for both women and men, because that is what will come off the back of that. It is also important on International Women's Day to talk about the representation of women, the importance of the role women play in politics, and the need for more women to be in roles of leadership in companies and, in particular, here in the Dáil.”
“It is great to be able to speak here today on International Women's Day and to discuss so many issues facing women right across this country, particularly in our role as representatives to ensure we represent all voices. I say that as a man standing here speaking while thinking about my mother, my three lovely sisters and all the women I meet every week in my constituency clinics and the issues they bring to me, as their representative, directly. It is important to say that Ireland has come a long way over recent decades in terms of equality. We have a long way to go, however. Ireland's equality journey is really only getting started and we have so much yet to achieve to ensure people feel equal in this society and, ultimately, are equal in reality.”
“However, it is important that we show leadership and lead from the front. We need to seriously consider a ban on social media for under 16s. It has to be considered. Australia showed leadership on it. France has followed suit. Why would Ireland not step up to say it will protect its young people and get them off these toxic platforms? I am not saying that the platforms are entirely toxic either. There is a lot of good content and a lot of great ways to connect with like-minded people. It is about making sure there is fairness on the landscape.”
“They only know the world in front of them on their phone but the phone their child is experiencing could be completely different. It is vital that this Government supports the education of parents so that parents can help to put safeguards in place for their own children as well, and can have open and honest conversations with their children about the material they have been exposed to, are being exposed to, stuff being sent around the school or incidents that have happened in the school. I do not know if that is happening at the moment, and I do not know if parents realise the extent of how bad it is. I know Coimisiún na Meán is a positive establishment, and I know it will be outlining how the Digital Services Act at European level will be introduced and rolled out here at Irish level.”
“The landscape before them right now is not fit for that and the landscape is pushing this toxic material in front of them and ultimately leading them to engage with it more. The companies have a responsibility but as legislators we have to protect our young people. In Galway East there is a company called Think Smart digital run by Aoife Noone. She is engaging with communities across Galway East and the broader country. She holds events to educate parents on what is happening on the phones of their teenagers. She has sold out ten halls across Galway East for between 100 and 300 people. Parents have no idea what is going on inside the bedrooms of their children on the phone. The parents do not have a clue about the information there and some of the material they are exposed to because the parents did not grow up in that world.”
“It pushes you to more extreme points of view because that is what holds your attention and that is what holds you on the platform. The problem is that whatever your initial belief is you end up pursuing a further and more extreme belief because the algorithm will push you down that rabbit hole so far that you continue to engage with it. To the point that people sometimes will not appreciate or engage with other points of view because hardened lines are drawn, what is important here is our teenagers and young people need to have an opportunity to grow up in a world where they can form their own opinions and ideas and critically think about and evaluate what is in front of them.”
“It was wholesome, warm and a great space to be in and it was exciting as a teenager because we could see all of the good things our friends were doing. You could have easy access to your friends and easy communication. Do not get me wrong. That brought severe issues for young people. It brought severe bullying and issues of social pressure to post on these platforms. Teenagers do everything they can to try to fit in, so everyone partook. The real issue is that since 2014 or 2015, TikTok has taken off and all mainstream social media platforms have adopted essentially rabbit-hole algorithms where young people can get funnelled into an ideology and do not even know why they agree with what they are agreeing with. Naturally, the further down the rabbit hole you go the more dangerous it gets.”
“It is important for me to outline the changing landscape we are seeing for young people on social media and the impact recommender algorithms are having on them. In my generation, when we went into secondary school we still had phones where you could call and text people and that was the extent of it. By the time we were in junior certificate, everyone had a smartphone. Everyone had Instagram and everyone had Snapchat. The entire landscape of being a teenager completely changed at that point. That was a time when if you went on Facebook you only saw what your friends posted. When you went on Instagram you saw your best friends’ posts of their day out with their friends, some event they were at or some trip they took with their family.”
“I appreciate everything the Minister of State said. One thing that needs to be made crystal clear to clubs this year is the promotion of female participation. I do not think we give it enough attention. We have to make sure that any club that is offering sport to males and females has to offer equal opportunities, equal access and equal participation. In many different sports clubs right across Galway East, I am seeing how much female participation has grown and how much young women are becoming involved. The competition is fierce in our schools, our clubs and everywhere else. A marker has to be laid down in this sports capital programme that clubs which do not give equal access to women will not get equal funding.”
“It is vital that clubs right across the country continue to receive investment, that Government increases the funding for the sports capital programme and that clubs are supported to achieve their best potential. I firmly believe that this is the most efficiently spent money in the State, particularly when it goes directly to the clubs and they then make it happen.”
“When the Minister of State visited Tuam with his officials and held a meeting to give all the clubs in County Galway an understanding of what changes they might be able to anticipate in the upcoming sports capital programme and answer the questions they had, it was very warmly received. That was a really productive exercise. I welcome his statement to the effect that applications will open in May or June. It is very important that the Department continues to learn from previous applications as to what worked, what did not work and how we can move forward stronger into the future. As I outlined to the Minister of State previously, we have many clubs in Galway that are based in areas where the population is growing, where needs are growing and where further investment in required.”
“Caithfidh muid an grá don teanga a chothú sna daoine óga ionas nach ábhar scoile amháin a bheidh inti ach cuid lárnach dá ngnáthshaol sóisialta. Dá bhrí sin, agus muid ag ceiliúradh Sheachtain na Gaeilge, is mian liom teachtaireacht a chur amach chuig muintir na hÉireann ar fad. Ná bítear eaglach an teanga a úsáid. Mar a dúirt an seanfhocal, “Is fearr Gaeilge bhriste na Béarla cliste”. Más cúpla focal atá ag daoine, molaim dóibh iad a úsáid gan náire. Abairtear “Go raibh maith agat”, “Slán”, nó “Maidin mhaith” sa siopa, san ionad oibre nó ar an tsráid. Tosaíonn athrú mór náisiúnta le céimeanna beaga pearsanta. Déanaimis rún daingean inniu nach mbeidh an Ghaeilge ina maisiúchán do laethanta saoire náisiúnta ach ina teanga bheo inár dtithe, pobail agus i nDáil Éireann go háirithe.”
“Muna gcosnaíonn muid na pobail seo, agus má ligeann muid do na Ghaeltachtaí titim as a gcéile, beidh buille marfach tugtha don teanga. Teastaíonn tacaíochtaí praiticiúla uathu, ní briathra beaga. Teastaíonn infheistíocht dháiríre i gcúrsaí oideachais agus fostaíochta ach, thar aon rud eile, i dtaobh na tithíochta. Ar ndóigh, tá ról lárnach ag an gcóras oideachais d’fhorbairt na teanga amach anseo. Feiceann muid an t-éileamh ollmhór atá ar Ghaelscoileanna agus Gaelcholáistí ar fud na tíre. Teastaíonn ó thuismitheoirí go mbeidh Gaeilge ag a gcuid páistí. Caithfidh an Rialtas a chinntiú go bhfuil na hacmhainní cuí ar fáil do scoileanna seo agus a dhóthain múinteoirí cáilithe chun freastal ar an éileamh seo.”
“Is teanga bheo bhríomhar nua-aimseartha í an Ghaeilge. Caithfidh muid a bheith ionraic sa Seomra seo. Ní leor ceiliúradh a dhéanamh ar an nGaeilge ar feadh coicíse gach Mí an Mhárta agus dearmad a dhéanamh uirthi den chuid eile den bhliain. Mar reachtóirí agus mar Theachtaí Dála, tá dualgas ríthábhachtach orainn an teanga a chosaint, a chaomhnú agus a chothú i ngach gné den saol poiblí. Ní mór dúinn ceannaireacht a ghlacadh. Má theastaíonn uainn go mbeidh an pobal ag labhairt na Gaeilge, caithfidh muid í a labhairt agus a chur chun cinn anseo ar dtús. Ina theannta sin, caithfidh muid aird ar leith a thabhairt ar na ceantair Ghaeltachta. Tá na pobail sin faoi bhrú ollmhór. Tá géarghá tithíochta iontu a chuireann isteach go mór ar theaghlaigh óga atá ag iarraidh fanacht ina gceantair dhúchais agus a gcuid paistí a thógáil le Gaeilge.”
“Is mór an onóir dom seasamh anseo sa Dáil inniu chun labhairt faoi ábhar atá an-ghar do mo chroí agus do chroí an náisiúin, is é sin, ár dteanga náisiúnta, an Ghaeilge. Agus muid i lár Sheachtain na Gaeilge, cuirfidh mé tús le mo chuid cainte trí comhghairdeas a dhéanamh le Conradh na Gaeilge agus le gach duine atá bainteach le heagrú na féile iontaí seo. Bliain i ndiaidh bliana, tugann sí spreagadh ollmhór dúinn ar fad. Ní sraith imeachtaí atá i Seachtain na Gaeilge amháin, áfach; is meabhrúchán í ar cé muid mar phobal agus ar ár stair, ár gcultúr agus ár bhféiniúlacht. Deirtear, “Tír gan teanga, tír gan anam”. Tá an fhírinne sin le brath inár dtimpeallacht gach lá. Nuair a labhraíonn muid Gaeilge, tá muid ag coinneáil naisc beo lenár sinsear. Ag an am céanna, tá muid ag cruthú todhchaí nua do na glúnta atá le teacht.”
“As with any large infrastructure scheme where there tend to be overruns and cost increases over time, the council needs to be assured that the Government will be there to support it to finish the project.”
“In 2022, the Government announced a fantastic scheme to provide sewerage services to unsewered villages. Two of those villages, Craughwell and Clarinbridge, are in County Galway, and a sum of €21.9 million was allocated. Subsequently at the end of last year, the Minister, Deputy Browne, increased that to €29.9 million, which was fantastic and it reduced the matched funding contribution from the council from 15% to 8%, which was very welcome. However, we have a huge problem. The council is saying it still does not have the 8% matched funding. That infuriates me because it is sitting on €29 million and it is not delivering significant infrastructure for wastewater treatment to those two villages. I ask the Taoiseach to write to Galway County Council and ask it to progress this project as it has €29 million.”
“The Minister is right. There has been such a significant investment over the past few years in public transport, active travel and trying to secure the future of our networks. Athenry had a privately-operated bus service. It pulled out essentially because the middle-day services were not feasible. There is a public service obligation, PSO, determination there. It is in place for Athenry and we need to meet it. The bus going from Athenry does not have to go directly on the motorway. It goes in by a place called Derrydonnell, over to Oranmore and into Galway City. It could be a fantastic service that covers more areas. It would be an addition of service because the rerouting of the 425A is seen as a shortcut to serve Athenry, and that cannot be the case because it would disproportionately affect people on the Galway Road.”
“I really appreciate that and the manner in which the Minister has worked with me on this since I became aware of the NTA's proposals. It is important to say that absolutely nobody in my constituency has come to me saying they want to see the 425A rerouted into Athenry. Previously, the 425A was a once daily return service. It is now a four times daily service. It is working fantastically and we do not need to change it. A 416 service from Tuam to Athenry in the form of a Local Link would be fantastic but the reality is that what we are missing is an investment. We need an Athenry bus that goes directly to Galway city. Athenry is a town with a population in excess of 5,000 people. Our trains, as the Minister knows, are at capacity and we need the bus to provide an alternative form of transport for people to get into the city.”
“I want to raise the issue of the 425A bus route from Mountbellew to Galway city. Back in January the NTA launched a public consultation on its proposals. I would like an update as to where that public consultation is at. Has it been reviewed and assessed and where is it at? From speaking to representatives of the NTA in the Committee of Public Accounts they seemed to indicate that by the end of quarter 1, they would have an update but I would appreciate an update from the Minister today.”
“One of the biggest issues in our education sector in east Galway is the demand for SNAs and the need for more SNAs and for schools to be better supported. The need is growing but we need to rise to meet it.”
“The State now funds thousands of SNA posts annually through the Department of education, with allocations advised by the NCSE. The expansion did not happen by accident. It reflects a policy decision that children with additional needs should be supported in mainstream education wherever possible. That is the right policy direction, but if we are being honest, the growth has presented massive challenges. Schools need clarity well in advance of each academic year that allocations are transparent and evidence-based, that SNAs themselves are recognised as skilled professionals within our education system and that communication with schools shall never create fear again. The Minister has visited east Galway and has met with many different schools, but I want to highlight this.”
“When I speak about special needs assistants today, I want to do so in a fashion that is factual and considered because behind all the headlines and all the political noise over the past week there are real children, real families and real SNAs who show up every single morning to do extraordinary work. Special needs assistants are not an add-on to the education system; they are part of the foundation of inclusive education in Ireland. They support children with additional care needs, assisting with mobility, personal care, communication, emotional regulation and helping students participate safely and meaningfully in school life. Their work allows teachers to teach, schools to function and children to belong. Over the past decade the number of SNAs has increased significantly in response to growing and more complex needs.”