Eoghan Kenny
Cork North-Central · Labour Party · Ireland
“The barriers facing families today may be different but the principle has not changed. The Labour Party believes opportunity should be determined by talent, effort and ambition, not by the balance in a parent's bank account. Technology has transformed education for the better and it is now an essential part of modern schooling.”
“Parents across Ireland are sitting at kitchen tables trying to work out how they are going to pay for another school year. For far too many families, the excitement of a child returning to school has been replaced by financial anxiety. Increasingly, parents are being forced into debt simply to educate their children.”
“Having been a teacher in two schools, I recognise that these tablets and these laptops that are provided to schools break and that maintenance for them is coming out of capitation grants that cannot be fulfilled by the schools because they are using capitation grants elsewhere.”
“I raise the issue of the lack of a plan for a new public sector pay deal and the lack of engagement on this matter. SIPTU, Fórsa, Unite and the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, INMO, are now to ballot their members for industrial action, up to and including strike action.”
“We need to stop pretending otherwise and introduce enforceable protections for families. As schools become more dependent on technology than ever before, the Government has cut the ICT grant by almost €15 million. That grant stands at just €35 million with no dedicated funding for repairs or maintenance.”
“It is a guidance letter once again, a guidance circular that was produced by the Minister at the time in 2017 that gave absolutely no consequences to the school for having branded school uniforms. In my opening speech I, as well as my colleagues, welcomed the free books scheme.”
The complete record
Every one of 651 lines we hold for Eoghan Kenny, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 12 of 14.
“I welcome the opportunity to discuss the power of higher education, research and skills as economic enablers. My predecessor, former Deputy Seán Sherlock, was a champion of research and skills when he served as a Minister of State. It is often said that education is a great leveller, meaning that further education qualifications can enable those with the least in our society to make good careers and comfortable lives for themselves and that they can overcome social and economic disadvantage. I am a believer in this theory. However, I do not believe our current education system provides that option for a broad enough base. Education cannot enable economic prosperity if costs prevent many from entering further or higher education.”
“I do not want to hear any more percentages or a figure of how much of the education budget is going to special education. That is probably in the Minister's speech. It is not enough. There is no point denying it. Until appropriate plans are in place, do not just keep throwing money at the issue. Introducing Bills and motions is providing solutions, so the Government cannot beat us with the "no solutions" stick. If the Government is not willing to take them on board, that is the Government's mistake, not ours. We will continue to advocate on behalf of the most vulnerable people in our society.”
“The Government does not know whether these special schools will ensure that every child will get a school place in the locality. That is a fault of this Government's own making. It committed to introducing this application system in the programme for Government, but when will that be? Is it the next time academic year or will it be the academic year five years from now? Another failure of this Government is the EPSEN Act. Failure to implement part of the Act is not acceptable. Section 13 outlines that the Ministers for education, children and health will provide the moneys and other resources as determined by the Minister for the purposes of the preparation and implementation of education plans. It strikes me that, since 2004, this has not been introduced. The Minister will have the power to provide the money needed.”
“The school therapists initiative is a fantastic PR stunt. We cannot get therapists to fill our HSE roles, yet the Minister says we will roll them out in special schools. Where is the Government getting these therapists from? Please provide the figures and information on the incentives. We cannot allow schools to believe that they are going to get therapists when it is just not possible. In its amendment, the Government will state that 3,700 new special classes will be available across the country for the coming school year, which should ensure that every child has access to a school place in his or her locality. The three words "which should ensure" are not the most comforting or confident language that parents contacting my office want to see. It is complete guesswork because there is no central application system.”
“They find themselves cleaning out school lockers, cleaning classrooms and doing administrative work that is not under their remit. How does the Minister think this makes an SNA feel? They do the work because they are hardworking individuals but if asked, they would all say they were undervalued and often went unnoticed in the work they were doing. SNA provision can never be capped. If the NCSE and the SENO tell the Department that the school must be sanctioned an SNA, it must be done. I asked previously in this House about an SNA freeze. The Department and the Taoiseach assured me that no such directive had been sent out. Why did a school principal then come to me and tell me this was what the school had been told? Like many parts of the Government, there is a complete lack of accountability.”
“Unfortunately, as we all heard at the teacher conferences last week, they believe they are not getting the resources from central government. I have met several charities, educational and advocacy groups in recent months. Their requests are not being recognised. I implore the Minister to consult these groups on any new policy initiatives. They are the ones on the ground who understand the issues, are speaking with parents and students, and who must play an important role in developing policy. Having worked with such dedicated and hardworking SNAs, I can see how undervalued they are in our education system. I ask the Minister to get rid of the 72-hour obligation on SNAs. I have seen SNAs being used for various tasks, mainly at the end of the school year, to meet these hours.”
“These are not stand-alone positions, as the Minister will know, but assistant principal roles. It is also important to note that the extra money for this role is pitiful. The role is so broad and intensive that I have seen at first hand these teachers coming in on their Easter, summer and mid-term breaks to cover the administrative work that goes with the job. That should not be the case. The SENCo role should be a stand-alone position. I spoke with a SENCo last Wednesday, who taught me previously. She said she was in the school and conveyed to me that she was "inundated, tired, exhausted and worn out", to use her words. That should not be the case. School staff are going above and beyond for their students and, more importantly, they are putting students at the centre of learning.”
“Children of schoolgoing age should be a priority. I guarantee that, if I went into the centre of Cork or Dublin or anywhere else throughout the country and stopped a person to ask if he or she believed this Government of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and regional Independents is doing enough to resource our schools, I could nearly guess the answer. The stories parents have shared with me and my colleagues in the Labour Party in recent months are harrowing. I have such sympathy and empathy for these families and children, but they do not want that. They want to see correct action. It should not have to come to a stage where they are forced to protest. I was lucky up until recently to be in schools with such dedicated special educational needs co-ordinators.”
“The greatest thing we can do for children with additional needs is to integrate them into their communities, show them the areas they live in and provide them with support to use their amenities. However, if they are travelling long distances in the morning and afternoon, that is not possible. Parents of these children met the Minister and the NCSE just last month and were informed that there was no central application system for children with special educational needs. When I spoke to them, they were horrified by this. It is an immediate and vital request. We need to be able to track the number of children who need support. We have the data but what we do not have is the political will. The Minister controls the purse strings. Unfortunately, we do not, so we are bringing solutions forward in this forum.”
“We make nine requests in our motion. They are genuine and come from parents and the various educational organisations I met throughout the country in recent months. The word "appropriate" is essential when describing the sanctioning of new school places or classrooms for children with additional needs. I was lucky and grateful to get the opportunity up until not so long ago to teach in a special educational needs setting. Unfortunately, there were students in that classroom with varying needs. It was not an appropriate setting. We need to realise that just because opening a class adds to the figure of new classes, it does not necessarily mean every child's needs are being met. Schools in the locality are vital.”
“In 2025, no child should be left without an appropriate school place within his or her own locality. There are two important parts to that statement, namely, "appropriate" and the words "within his or her own locality." We in the Labour Party will no longer accept figures being thrown around the place like the Taoiseach did yesterday regarding the number of classes being opened in mainstream or special schools and about having the highest number of SNAs we have ever had in our system. The reality is Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have led Governments for the life of this State. It is a complete failure of the State to adequately resource our schools with infrastructure, teachers, SNAs and genuine long-term supports. Now, the Department finds itself scrambling at the eleventh hour to paper over the cracks of this Government's making.”
“I will start off with how interesting it is that the Government has chosen to oppose our motion so rigorously. The Minister knows as well as I do that what we are requesting is needed but I now question, looking at the Government's amendment, whether the Department realises or understands the extent of the concerns raised daily by genuine families. Since being elected to the House in December, one of the biggest issues brought to my attention has been that of school places, or the lack thereof, and special educational needs as a whole. Today, we are tabling a motion to support the families of children with additional needs, families who slept outside the Minister's Department, protested through the streets of Cork city and established equality and education groups right throughout the country.”
“I move: That Dáil Éireann: notes that: — there is an ongoing failure by the State to adequately plan for school places for children with special or additional educational needs; — parents have resorted to sleeping outside the Department of Education to raise awareness of the lack of appropriate places; — significant sections of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs (EPSEN) Act 2004 remain un-commenced, and a review of the EPSEN Act was begun in 2021 with a public consultation in 2023 but to date no report or recommendations have been published; — schools that have been assessed as requiring additional Special Needs Assistant (SNA) positions are being blocked from recruiting for these essential roles; — there is no timeframe or sufficient budgetary provision in place for ensuring the national provision of in-school therapies through the Educational Therapy Support Service (ETSS), building on the work of the School Inclusion Model pilot; and — the training and supports provided to teachers, SNAs, and other educational staff have not kept pace with developments in the field of additional needs education; recalls that: — 126 children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) had no school place at the start of this school year in September, and the number of children accessing the Home Tuition Grant scheme due to the lack of an SEN placement has increased; — there is no national centralised system operated by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) to determine sufficiently in advance the number of additional special educational school places required; — there are no protocols in place for the sharing of information on SEN between pre-schools, primary schools, post primary schools and special schools to support children as they advance through the educational system; and — 14,221 children were overdue an assessment of needs in December 2024, nearly 13,000 children are waiting for initial contact with a Children's Disability Network Team, and tens of thousands of children are on primary care wait lists for treatment, adding further pressure on schools and educators to support children with additional unmet needs; recognises that: — parents and educators continue to have significant concerns about the current system of planning for SEN provision where schools are put under pressure at short notice to open classes without adequate resourcing, appropriate accommodation or training for staff, and with minimal specialised support; and — 399 new special classes were announced for the 2025/26 school year earlier this month, but many children will struggle to secure places appropriate to their needs in their local community; and calls on the Government to: — ensure the right of every child to an appropriate school place in their general locality is fulfilled in September 2025; — introduce a central application system for special educational places to commence for the 2026/27 school year, and develop protocols on the sharing of information at every step of the educational system; — provide appropriate means of transport for children with additional educational needs to access their school place; — guarantee that every school will receive sufficient funding for the full equipping of classrooms including modular builds, sensory and play spaces, and assistive technology when new special classes are opened; — publish the finalised review of the EPSEN Act and commit to bringing forward amending proposals as necessary and to commencing the long delayed measures; — provide a timeline for the national rollout of in-school therapists through the ETSS to provide certainty for schools and parents, and introduce play, art, music and other relevant therapies and in-school counselling where appropriate; — lift the arbitrary cap on SNAs, and ensure that positions are funded when the NCSE has recommended a post is required, remove the 72 hour obligation on SNAs, and continue to support the professionalisation of the SNA role; — introduce an initial teacher education programme for student teachers allowing them to complete at least one school placement in an additional needs setting, and introduce free upskilling in SEN for existing teachers; and — ensure every teacher is fully trained in seizure first aid, amend the assault leave scheme, and develop a new position in schools of a Special Education Needs Officer.”
“I thank the Minister. That is really to be welcomed. As the Minister has mentioned it, I will briefly touch on enhancing settings, access to settings and capital grants. As she has said, if we are trying to move towards more targeted supports for children with less visible disabilities, such as those on the autism spectrum and those who have speech and language difficulties, targeted support and capital grants for enhancing access to settings will be much needed. The Minister's reply is very much welcomed.”
“I thank the Minister. I appreciate that. If that table could also be shared with my colleague, Deputy Wall, that would be great. AIM is extremely important for early childhood care. As the Minister will know from her previous Department, the resourcing of special educational needs supports is very necessary in every facet of education. The issue of maintaining AIM comes back to financial constraints as regards level 7 and trying to get people into level 7 courses so that they can provide the universal and targeted supports the Minister has mentioned. At the end of year 3, the evaluation report outlined that work was under way to encourage families of students with less visible disabilities, such as speech and language issues and autism spectrum disorders in particular, to come in.”
“I am asking this question for Deputy Wall. Will the Minister provide the number of access and inclusion model childcare places provided since 2020 by county in tabular form? What are the actions she is taking to increase the number of places? Will she make a statement on the matter?”
“I appreciate that. It would be great if the Minister could clarify the position. We have the figures for 2021, although the website might not be working to its full capacity because it is a brand new website and, as the Minister said, it has been designed for the current 2023-24 price for childcare. Do we have the figures for the childcare facilities of 2021? Once the website is fixed, will the figures be available to put up on the website? Are we still looking for the figures or are they available to the Department? The Minister will appreciate that new parents entering the system are presented with a table of fees by the service provider without any context as to whether those fees match what was being charged in 2021.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire. The Minister will appreciate the Labour Party has frequently asked her and the previous Minister about this in parliamentary questions and parents have been told to go to their local childcare committees for historic fees, go to the national childcare website or contact the NCS directly for the fees. Parents have already gone down those three routes to access fees. A response to a parliamentary question from my party leader, Ivana Bacik, on 29 September 2024 stated the Department would endeavour to have these fees publicly available as soon as possible. A timeframe on the short term and long term would be gratefully appreciated. There is no opportunity for somebody who had a child in preschool in 2021 to understand whether that childcare facility is now charging more or charging less.”
“Is the Minister aware the national childcare website does not list fees for childcare providers for the year 2021, the key year against which fees are benchmarked for core funding? Will the Department rectify this as a matter of urgency? The Labour Party has submitted at least four parliamentary questions over the past year but the Minister and the previous Minister have failed to provide an answer.”
“The Minister of State and I know this is wrong and needs to be rectified. We need to work collectively across the House to rectify these issues.”
“Public representatives should be able to go back to their constituents with answers to their issues. I also ask the Minister of State about the possibility of creating a digital platform where residents in different communities in different areas can log complaints in their area which would provide a clearer picture for Irish Water instead of people wasting time on the telephone and receiving reference numbers but no solutions or answers. A digital platform makes sense. Importantly, as we are a party of workers, I highlight the fact this is not about Irish Water workers - the men and women on the ground who are doing the work. I have genuine sympathy for them carrying out their work on a daily basis and more than likely moving to different locations as complaints come in. They have no definite duty on a day-to-day basis.”
“I ask the Minister of State and this Government to put a water softener in place at source. If that was done, it would not fall to every household to put in a water softener. The Minister of State knows as well as I do that water softeners are not cheap, so if every household is being asked to put in a water softener it just is not possible. I will ask the Minister of State and Government for a number of things. We need to see long-term measures put in place, including the replacement of pipes in all areas of Cork city and not a piecemeal approach to their replacement. I ask the Minister of State to explain to Irish Water that when a public representative asks genuine questions, the answers they should be given should be substantial, concrete and have substance.”
“I have great sympathy for him and his family. We should not be in the situation where families are forced to buy bottled water. We constantly receive emails from Irish Water about the flushing system. This is a short-term solution to a very much long-term issue. Residents are being told to run their taps until they see the water is clear. That is what is happening in Cork right now. This is disgraceful; it is shameful. I was born and bred in Mallow. It is my home town. I know what it is like to be on a hard water supply in Mallow. In the estate I have lived in all of my life, Castlepark, we have a hard water supply. I live at home with my grandmother and the number of washing machines, kettles and showerheads we go through is stark. It is unbelievable. When constituents ask about it, the answer we give them is to put in a water softener.”
“I will move on to the quality of water in Cork. Three friends of mine live on the Lee Road in Cork. They wake up in the morning not knowing whether or not they will have the opportunity to take a shower or to drink water from the tap. That is just unbelievable. People refer to the "discolouration" of water in Cork but it is dirty water. It is so bad that people are continually buying bottled water to use instead of drinking water. A father of two children contacted me. He told me: As a father of two young boys aged four and one, I am in complete fear of what this water may doing to my children if consumed. For years, my family has been forced to buy bottled water at a cost of €25 to €30 per week amounting to €100 to €120 per month, an additional financial burden in an already difficult economic climate.”
“No costings, no details and no explanation were given. When a constituent makes contact with me or my office about an issue with Irish Water, there is a dedicated telephone line to contact. We explain the issue and receive a reference number and after that, there is nothing. There is no follow-up or direct answer and nothing for us to go back to the constituent with. Constituents are often told by Irish Water to contact the local authority, whether that is the city council or the county council. When constituents make contact with the local authority, they are told to go back to Irish Water with their issue. There is no inter-communication and, more importantly, no accountability. Nobody is taking the blame for the issues we have. People are genuinely at their wits' end when it comes to water supply.”
“I appreciate Uisce Éireann is not in the Minister of State's portfolio, but where do we start with Irish Water. My county of Cork has had its fair share of dealings with Irish Water. The quality of our water and the response of Irish Water to the problems we have in Cork are utterly shameful. On Monday last, my Labour Party colleagues on Cork City Council met officials from Irish Water. To say that their questions remain unanswered is an understatement. Most of the time, the answers received from Irish Water lack any detail or substance. I will use one example. My colleague, Councillor Peter Horgan, asked Irish Water about the water pumping stations within the city limits and the cost of maintaining them. The answer he received was lacking in any sort of detail that he could explain to his constituents.”
“Another principal told me the school had to use the grant it received in January for maths equipment to pay for lighting and heating costs. This has a knock-on effect for the upcoming academic year. Summer capitation grants could be used for equipment and minor works, as the Minister knows, for the academic year to come but the backlog of bills and invoices are actually being paid for with this capitation grant. We are in a situation now where schools are robbing Peter to pay Paul in the context of this capital grant.”
“Schools are at absolute breaking point financially. Having spoken to a number of principals in recent days, I have come to the understanding that schools are unable to continue providing an education because they do not have the funds to operate. One principal informed me that the Department of Education and the financial support services unit, FSSU, have told schools to take money out of their hot meals account to pay their bills. That is absolutely outrageous. In other instances, the Department has advised schools to set up a payment plan to pay for heating and lighting costs. That payment plan can only last for one month. A principal of one school outlined how the heating is being turned off and students are being asked to put on their coats.”
“I raise the 215 Blarney bus. The 215 Blarney bus goes from Mahon Point to Blarney. The Minister of State can appreciate it is coming from Mahon Point and through the city, so the timing is quite difficult. I want to make the Minister of State aware of it. I know he will not have any answers on that. Will he look into it?”
“I thank the Minister, and I appreciate that. The Minister has the opportunity to have the same impact the former Minister, Niamh Bhreathnach, had in 1995. He has that opportunity to make that same impact where, across all socioeconomic backgrounds, third level education was fully accessible because third level fees were abolished. The Minister could have that same impact the former Labour Party Minister, Niamh Bhreathnach, had. I am asking the Minister sincerely and I am absolutely willing to engage with him on this. It is about solutions ultimately. I hope the Minister is going to allow Deputies across the House to give him that opportunity, whether it is abolishing fees or perhaps looking into the means testing or increasing the threshold.”
“In Cork, we have purpose-built accommodation for 1,534. We have 38,000 students in Cork between UCC and MTU. The average rent for a house in Cork right now is more than €2,000. That is one example of what the Minister can tackle but I would be concerned at the wording from him and the Tánaiste.”
“When the SUSI grant is being made available, in terms of means, it is taking into account both parents and the individual. If a student has a part-time job outside of college, it is taking into account those means as well, so there is no encouragement there for a student to have a part-time job. I am quite concerned at the lack of communication between the Minister and the Tánaiste. On 11 November, the Tánaiste stated that a huge priority of his was to abolish student fees. Less than four months later, the Minister on 15 March stated that it is not the best use of public moneys. I would be quite concerned at that. I met with the USI, of which my colleague, Senator Laura Harmon, was a former president. There are serious issues with regard to housing. I will give the Minister an example.”
“I ask what plans the Minister and his Department have to reduce the student contribution fee, given that the programme for Government commitment is to "continue to reduce the student contribution fee over the lifetime of the Government to ease the financial burden on students and families at the start of each academic year". I am quite concerned about the Minister's comments on 15 March this year, where he said that it may not be the best use of public moneys. I am aware that two other Deputies have also asked this.”
“We have tens of thousands of children waiting on essential therapies and we have more than 10,000 children waiting on assessments of needs in this country and it is these very people who are sitting in the Visitors Gallery who are the ones dealing with this on a daily basis. I am calling on the Minister and her Government to support this motion.”
“He expressed his disappointment in anti-bullying policies as just being a tick-the-box exercise and expressed his concerns that many young carers go unnoticed in our system because of the stigma that surrounds it in our schools. Sarah Ann told us that young carers like her exist in the shadows. These interactions were stark. Family Carers Ireland has support programmes right across the country. It has two young carers support workers who are funded by Family Carers Ireland and not by the Department. These young carers we speak about often have so much piling up on them. We know the issues and the Minister knows them as well.”
“Conor told us that he lives a two and a half hour bus journey from University of Limerick where he is studying and that he lives in constant fear about how quickly he could get back if something happened at home. Conor added that if something was to happen to his mother or father, it would stop him from pursuing his own career in education as he will have to be the one who provides for his family. Fourteen-year-old Lucy told us that she felt invisible in school and expressed her concerns at 14 years of age at the lack of support and services available in our schools. Benjamin informed us that he did not get the support in school despite reaching out to the school staff.”
“We need to see the implementation, as this motion calls for, of bespoke programmes in schools to recognise and support the needs and circumstances of young carers. What is most important in education, and the Minister knows this, is that we try to give every single child across the country the greatest education that he or she can possibly receive. It is on the Department to give that education. We will be unable to support young carers across this country if we cannot give them the opportunity to develop their education while they provide this vital care. Today in the audiovisual room I was struck by the almost gut-wrenching meeting I had with Family Carers Ireland and the four young carers.”
“I thank my colleague, Deputy Wall, for the amount of work he has done on this motion, which I really welcome. I welcome those from Family Carers Ireland, who are in the Visitors Gallery, and the carers who spoke to us today. This motion is really important. A huge number of people across the country provide 24-7 dedicated care to family members. I want to take the opportunity to commend every single carer across the country, but in particular young carers. This motion is seeking the opportunity for young carers to be recognised in this State. There is an obligation now on the Department of Education to provide dedicated programmes of supports specific to the needs of carers. Right now in this country, neither the Department of Education nor the Department of children have dedicated support programmes for young carers in Ireland.”
“It is absolutely fantastic but it would be great to have some substance forthcoming. Perhaps we need to begin in this regard with the DEIS schools by giving scholarships and opportunities to students in our most disadvantaged areas. Finances or class should not prevent any person from learning Irish. I do not mean just any person but any child. No child should be prevented from learning Irish because of finances or a lack of accommodation in a school. It is as simple as that. If we are trying to promote our language but preventing children across the country from having the opportunity to learn their native language because of a lack of finances, accommodation or resources, what are we doing in this Chamber at all? We should be giving them the opportunity. It must be an opportunity available to all of us.”
“They are trying to get across to the students they are teaching but the reality is that students are not engaging because of the education system we have. We in the Labour Party want to see a national centre for learning Irish, modelled on the Welsh example, and develop free Irish language courses for adults and new Irish citizens and immigrants, alongside adult education courses delivered in Irish. We would like to see increased funding for scholarships for students to attend the Gaeltacht, starting first with DEIS schools. A DEIS+ initiative was announced yesterday with no timeline or budget. There is no idea as to when it is going to be rolled out, leaving students in limbo. It was a PR stunt with no substance behind it. I absolutely welcome the initiative, however.”
“We must ensure leaving certificate reform leads to radical change in the approach to the learning of the Irish language, giving particular recognition to native and fluent speakers of the language and enhancing the attractiveness of studying it in a new and progressive manner. We must see new training routes, grants and funding for extra courses to support teachers to gain stronger levels of Irish. I want to give the Minister an example of someone I know who was to become an Irish teacher. She did one year of the two-year PME in UCC and went to a school but left the teaching profession because she did not feel enough emphasis was on the Irish language within the school community. That is the reality of it. We have teachers who are absolutely indebted to the language they are trying to speak.”
“Right now, that is just not possible for the majority of students across this country. We can introduce schemes to encourage businesses to provide a service through Irish. We need to increase funding and staffing resources for language planning, support the creation of urban Gaeltachtaí where speaking Irish is prioritised, and provide a subsidised translation service to encourage more private and voluntary bodies to produce bilingual documents and communications. We are and continue to strive to be a bilingual country. That is the reality of it. We can take examples from other multilingual countries, like Canada, and develop proposals to encourage bilingual packaging and labelling. These are small changes but they still contribute to the daily use of the language across demographics in society.”
“We need to plan now for the 20-year plan from 2030. I would like to see an ambitious campaign to promote the spoken use of the Irish language, with the goal of growing daily use. We can take examples from countries that have worked well to revive language use. We can learn best practice in Wales and elsewhere to launch a new effort to promote everyday use of spoken Irish. We must ensure citizens can access all government services in Irish and provide increased support to grow the language on a shared-island basis. We can put in place a recruitment plan to increase the number of Irish language speakers in the public services, but particularly in education, because that is where it needs to come from. We need to give the children the opportunity to be educated through Irish and the right thereto.”
“The school was told there was a freeze and that it could not employ the SNAs until September. The Minister and I might engage on that specific case, if that is at all possible. The lack of accommodation and supports is having serious consequences. There are worrying signs concerning the Irish language itself. The last census showed the number of people who speak Irish daily or weekly had slightly declined. In Labour, we want to see every citizen given the opportunity to speak Irish daily. In a more globalised world, the future of our language requires attention. What is being done or has been tried is not working well enough to grow daily use of the language. We must review the 20-year strategy for the Irish language, which began in 2010, and we must now begin a new plan to take us to 2050.”
“That needs to come from the Government whether it is through Raidió Rí-Rá being on FM full time, and not just the token Seachtain na Gaeilge we have every year, which is effective but not effective enough. I believe the Minister would agree with me that more has to be done. Several Deputies from Sinn Féin outlined that we have serious issues with accommodation and support services in our schools. I absolutely agree with them. I asked the Taoiseach earlier about a Gaelscoil in my hometown, Mallow, in my own constituency. It was sanctioned for 1.83 SNAs. I asked the Taoiseach whether there was a recruitment freeze affecting SNAs but he went about answering the question in a way completely different from what was desired. He literally could not tell me whether there was a recruitment freeze affecting SNAs.”
“Taking away the option of an oral exam at junior cert level damaged that opportunity even further. Teachers will tell you that the importance of being able to communicate through Irish is far better than learning poetry and prose. Gaeilge is a central part of Irish life and culture and has a wider significance, not only in Ireland but across Europe, as one of the oldest spoken and literary languages still in use. More and more young people are trying to speak the language. There is an opportunity to grow and develop it further. However, we have to promote the language to young people. I am 25 years old. It is very rare that I hear it through social media, radio or TV. We need to advocate on behalf of the Irish language.”
“They are not teaching in our schools in Ireland. Many of them do not have any idea of whether they will come back. Young people and young teachers are leaving Ireland for many reasons, including housing, the cost of living, healthcare and pay and conditions. I am genuinely concerned about the education system because of that. These are problems that can be fixed. We can attract many people back to the Irish education system and in turn keep newly qualified teachers from immediately looking elsewhere as soon as they qualify. We must look at the way we teach Irish in secondary schools. Last night, I spoke to a former Irish teacher of mine, who I eventually taught with. They genuinely believe there is far too much emphasis on the written language and not enough emphasis on the spoken language.”
“The Labour Party has supported many Gaelscoileanna and Gaelcholáistí throughout the country. However, the point stands true that the lack of Irish teachers and Gaelscoileanna comes across in almost every facet of education in Ireland. We simply do not have enough teachers. That is the reality of it. Where will we get the teachers? Many teachers who are fluent or proficient in Irish have left Ireland to work overseas, where they can find better pay and conditions. Many of them are taking the resource of Irish learning with them. I was a student in Mary Immaculate College. I studied in Thurles, where a bachelor's degree in education in many subjects, including Irish, is offered. A lot of my classmates in Thurles - we graduated in 2003 - have moved overseas, bringing that Irish learning with them.”
“I have heard countless times from Irish people that they wished they spoke the language to a better degree. Of course, much of that learning is essential early in life in order to have a continued affinity, but that is not confined to early education and adult learning of the language has increased in recent years. I encourage anyone who feels that way to re-engage with learning the language. However, I will speak to the main focus of the motion, which is the right to be educated in Irish. For too many, that is simply not an option, whether it is due to too few Gaelscoileanna or a lack of Irish language teachers, as the motion speaks to. My colleague, Deputy Bacik, is supporting local Gaelscoileanna in her area in the establishment of a Gaelcholáiste to serve the constituents of Dublin 2, 4, 6 and 8, and Dublin Bay South.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle. I thank Sinn Féin for tabling this important motion, which the Labour Party will support. Mar nach mbeidh mé in ann é seo a rá go hiomlán i gceart as Gaeilge, leanfaidh mé ar aghaidh as Béarla. As I do not speak sufficient Irish, I will continue my statement in English. I assure the House and those who spoke in Irish that it is something I am working on with my old Irish teacher from school. It is an important motion. I thank Sinn Féin for tabling it. The Irish language is a great source of pride for our nation and people. It is a great symbol of our heritage and history. Many of us, although we cannot speak Irish as we would like, take great pride in it and in its use, even if it is only a cúpla focal.”