Helen McEntee
Meath East · Fine Gael · Ireland
“There are no new missions, so there is only so much we can partake in. In regard to UN requests over the past ten years, in September 2019, we had 14 Defence Forces personnel deployed to a UN mission in Mali as part of a joint operation with the German armed forces.”
“I thank the Deputy for his continued engagement on this matter. It is appreciated and I reaffirm our shared commitment to truth and justice, not least for Private Rooney, but in particular for his family.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising the matter. I know he is committed to this issue; I am too. I have in recent months spent some time travelling to different barracks and Army bases and meeting with personnel. What I see all over the country is their professionalism, dedication and commitment.”
“I disagree that people are being pushed into the courts. The situation is exactly the opposite. I have said in the Chamber many times since I started taking these questions that the State Claims Agency is there and wants to mediate and work directly with people in order that cases do not go directly to the courts.”
“We are all committed to strengthening recruitment to and supporting retention in the Permanent Defence Force. The military authorities have advised that the strength of the Permanent Defence Force stood at 7,823 personnel on 31 May, the most recent date for which we have a figure available.”
“It is the case that no mission is the same, so it is also a matter for the Defence Forces to assess and scope out the mission and then to decide whether it is a mission we can partake in. A question keeps being asked about what it is we would not be able to be a part of if we were to keep the triple lock.”
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“The curriculum at all levels is designed to reflect and support all learners regardless of background, ability, or gender. The primary curriculum framework places a strong focus on inclusion and diversity. It aims to ensure every child feels they belong and are respected and safe so they can engage fully in learning and thrive. lt recognises each child’s unique background, identity and strengths and is designed to support what is best for every individual child. Under this framework, foreign languages will be introduced at primary level on a phased basis from September 2025. Following on from the successful changes introduced to the junior cycle, at post-primary level there has been considerable progress across the senior cycle redevelopment programme.”
“I have asked the Teaching Council to begin work on taking the necessary steps on that immediately, with a view to the change coming into effect from September 2026. I will also ensure that the design of high-quality modules in special education to support teachers on their professional learning journey is also prioritised. While we need to look to the future, almost 79,000 teachers have registered with the Teaching Council. We need to make sure that every teacher and person working with our students is supported and can receive that level of training. Ensuring we have a curriculum that fully supports children and young people to achieve their potential and that equips our students to thrive and succeed must be our north star.”
“We also need to ensure that children who need access to therapies get them. I have brought a memo to Cabinet setting out how we are going to provide speech and language therapists and occupational therapists, initially in our special schools before expanding that to special education classrooms and, ultimately, our wider school community. Of course, we are starting with the special schools. I hope we are in a position to start this later this academic year. We also need to continue to support teachers, considering that we are facing a more complex and challenging environment. It is essential that all future graduates have a mandatory special education placement as part of their initial teacher education.”
“Above all, the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, and I are working to ensure that everything we are doing now can be brought forward in order that we can identify at the earliest stage possible in the preceding year who the children are, what their needs are, how that need should be met, how we can engage with the schools and ensure that the enrolment process opens at the same time as that for everybody else. This will ensure that when students are applying, if they are applying at the same time as their siblings or if there is a junior or post-primary application going in, early in the year in January, when everybody else learns where they are going to school, children with additional needs will find that out as well. Working with the NCSE we are making good progress on this.”
“This is a doubling of the classes in the last five years and we intend, at post-primary level in particular, that large schools will grow to four special classes each. In 2025, we focused on those primary schools with eight classrooms or more with no special class and we have secured agreement from many of those to open classes this year - in fact, 399 of the 400 to date. I acknowledge and thank those schools that have worked with us and are now going through the enrolment process. We hope that this can be concluded as quickly as possible.”
“This will make it clear to parents, in particular, but to everybody involved why it is important to attend school. As Deputies may know, the vast majority of children with special educational needs are supported in mainstream schools. In fact, about 97% of our students attend in mainstream schools. I thank all the school principals and teachers, special education teachers and SNAs, who work so hard every day to support all of our students. Nevertheless, there continues to be a strong and growing need to provide further special classes and special school places for children with more complex needs. In mainstream schools by September 2025, there will be more than 3,700 special classes supporting more than 21,000 children.”
“I was given an example the other day of a school that is not in the pilot programme but that took on board the approach being taken there. The school instructed all the teachers to call children by their first names three times in the first hour. This acknowledgement, letting the children know they knew they were present, resulted in school attendance going up. It is about looking at the simple things that can be done in schools, looking at the demographic and the children in the school and everything around them and seeing what can be done. I am excited to see how this can be rolled out in order that more schools can take part. We want to work across government and, more broadly, bring it back to basics. In September, there will be a multimedia campaign to promote school attendance.”
“There also has to be continued investment in the school completion programme and we have to make sure we have better planning between this and the range of other supports available through the non-formal education sector in youth. Recently, I met students who told me that the only reason they are still in school and doing their leaving certificate is the work of the school completion officers and the support they have received. It is important that they are supported. We will roll out Anseo, a new evidence-based framework piloted in four schools, to 60 additional schools to help schools analyse and respond to attendance data. This will help schools to access and identify their own information and to see if there are changes that could be made.”
“Among these is a revision of the Education (Welfare) Act to strengthen statutory supports for children but in particular, to bring children under six attending primary school within its scope to ensure earlier intervention. I am hearing back very clearly from principals and teachers in the school completion programme that children in junior infants are missing significant numbers of days at school. This pattern often continues with them, so we must ensure these interventions take place for children in school who are four or five years old. There must also be continued investment in the educational welfare service, including an expansion of educational welfare officer, EWO, capacity and acknowledging the fantastic work they do in working with other teams.”
“This brings together my Department, the Departments of children and social protection and many others as well. In my first Dáil contribution as Minister for education, I highlighted the significant increase in absenteeism in our schools, particularly post Covid. The recent Tusla attendance report shows that in the 2022-23 school year, more than 110,000 primary and 65,000 post-primary students missed 20 or more days of school. This data is hugely alarming. Regular attendance in school is essential, not just for academic achievement but also for well-being, social development and life-long outcomes. This week, I announced a comprehensive suite of targeted but universal actions to improve school attendance.”
“The programme for Government commits to expanding the scheme, and this is something on which I will be working closely with Minister of State, Deputy Michael Moynihan, in the years ahead. We know from data that Traveller and Roma children have poorer educational outcomes than those of the general population. Additional funding was secured to increase the number of community link workers and as part of the Traveller and Roma strategy, we will work in several schools and focus on fostering greater engagement with Traveller and Roma families to improve communication, promote positive relationships and support the learning of Traveller and Roma children. Again, we have a focus group and working group that comes together to look at the strategy, how it is working or not working and what else we need to do.”
“I am delighted to say that from the start of the 2025-26 school year, for the first time ever, all children and young people enrolled in primary, special and post-primary schools under the free education scheme will be provided with schoolbooks and core classroom resources. I acknowledge my colleague and the former Minister, Deputy Foley, in this regard. School transport is a much-valued scheme to families. It ensures children living in rural and remote areas but also in built-up areas and those disadvantaged by distance are provided with a safe and reliable service to their nearest school of eligibility. More than 173,000 pupils benefit from the scheme each day, making it a core component of equitable school access nationwide.”
“It gives us a chance, particularly when we are talking about supporting children who are at risk of educational disadvantage, to better align what we call the formal education system with the informal, such as youth groups and organisations that are doing fantastic work, so that they are working with our schools to support children during schools hours, in the evenings, at weekends, during summer time and at other times of break. This Government has recognised that the cost of preparing children for school can also be a barrier to the participation of children and young people in education.”
“I have established a design advisory group with principals, home school community liaison and school completion programme co-ordinators who work with children from areas of high intergenerational disadvantage every day. This student-centred design approach will identify the resources needed to ensure the DEIS Plus scheme meets the needs of children and young people at acute risk of educational disadvantage. I have met principals in particular, and it is clear that what we need in some primary schools might be different from that in post-primary, but it is about the lived experience and about speaking to those at the heart of this who understand what children need. The transfer of youth into the Department of education is a really positive step.”
“The Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools, DEIS, programme, which aims to address concentrated educational disadvantage, has seen the gap in retention rates between DEIS and non-DEIS schools halved, from 16.8% to 8.4%, since the programme began. Shortly after becoming Minister, I announced I would develop and publish a new DEIS plan in 2025 to try to close that gap further. A key part of the plan will be to close the performance gap between DEIS and non-DEIS schools and introduce more innovative solutions to tackle disadvantage while supporting and expanding the positive work being done. I will also develop a new DEIS Plus scheme to put greater focus on those schools with the highest levels of educational disadvantage where we know there are children with huge levels of trauma who need additional support.”
“Every learner deserves the opportunity to thrive. Our focus is on high standards, inclusive practices and strong supports to ensure no one is left behind. Breaking down those barriers, whether social, economic or educational, is essential to helping all learners succeed. Education should open doors, build confidence and prepare every learner for life, not just for exams. I want to prioritise actions to tackle educational disadvantage. This means ensuring the necessary resources are in place to support and retain children and young people in school and to ensure they complete their leaving certificate and can be supported to achieve their full potential.”
“I am grateful for the opportunity to set out some of my priorities as Minister for Education and Youth and to share time with my colleagues. My objective is to deliver a world-class education system that breaks down barriers and ensures every child is supported to achieve their full potential. An education system that wraps around all children and young people in every community is essential if we are to achieve that. I want the outcome of my time as Minister to be greater equity and excellence in education for all children and young people in Ireland. We cannot have one without the other. Today I will focus on specific ambitions that break down barriers and support children and young people. As I said, I want to ensure we have a world-class education system that is inclusive, equitable and empowering for all.”
“We do have positions that are not filled, in particular in some of our larger cities, but overall, we need to make sure we do everything possible to allow more teachers to come through the system and ensure that we keep those who are here and encourage more back. That is something I am working on at the moment, and I hope to bring forward further proposals in the weeks and months ahead.”
“I thank the Deputy for acknowledging the changes being proposed around the permanent posts. The reason I am proposing that is to make sure our young teachers have that permanent position so that they can access mortgages more quickly and that it gives them that sense of belonging within their schools. It is very much a decision for the individual schools as to whether they allow career breaks. We have said very clearly, and the Department has set out clear rules, that if schools cannot fill the position, they should not be allowing teachers to take career breaks. I know that is not always the case.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. More children than ever are accessing the transport scheme, at 173,000. There is a very clear commitment to make sure we expand that further and that as many children as possible can access it. Of course, that means more buses and more drivers. There are clear reasons as to why the 70 year age limit was set, but we have given a clear commitment in the programme for Government to review that to see if any changes can be made, be it in the size of the buses or the number of children. That is happening at the moment, and it is something on which my Department will be working closely with the Department of Transport.”
“We are working on a daily basis with our colleagues in the EU. We have consistently called for a review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. We welcomed the move yesterday but it has not happened fast enough. We recognised Palestine almost a year ago. We have increased our contributions to UNRWA when others turned away and we will legislate for the goods imported from occupied territories. Above all, Ireland will not be silent. The suffering we are seeing, the bombardment of children and the innocent people of Gaza at the hands of Israel who are living in pure unadulterated hell as we stand here today is beyond comprehension. We need an urgent ceasefire. We need to see the release of all hostages. Above all, we need to see the full flow of aid and we need to see it now.”
“These are innocent children and innocent families who are living through hell, experiencing unimaginable pain, hunger, suffering and loss. For 11 weeks, not a single ounce of aid has been allowed to enter Gaza. This is a deliberate action from Israel to simply deny people access to food, medicine and basic painkillers. The meagre amount of aid that has been allowed to enter Gaza this week will not change the fates of so many people who are facing starvation, who are injured, who require immediate medical attention, and the doctors and humanitarian workers who are risking everything to help those who need it the most. We saw only in the last few minutes a confirmation that Irish diplomats and other diplomats have been shot at in the West Bank by Israeli soldiers. Ireland will not stand by.”
“I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, for sharing his time with me and allowing me to contribute to this really important discussion. It is clear that we are witnessing war crimes every single day. Every day when we turn on our TV, open our phones and our newspapers, we can be in no doubt that what we are witnessing is a brutal war on children unfolding before our eyes. Every time we think things cannot get any worse and that there are no more lines to cross, we are proven wrong. The UN has told us that 14,000 children will die of starvation in the next two days, or less, because it made that statement yesterday. That is 14,000 innocent children on top of the 15,000 who have already been killed, murdered, in Gaza. That is on top of the 34,000 who have been injured.”
“I acknowledge the teachers, the wonderful SNAs and special education teachers and everyone in our schools for the fantastic work they do. While billions of euro has gone into our schools portfolio in recent years, there is obviously more we need to do. I am very aware that there are schools that need replacement buildings and extensions and where further progress needs to be made. I am happy to engage on the school in question to see what progress can be made to ensure it has the resources it needs to support teachers.”
“I acknowledge the significant engagement I have had with the Deputy on this. It is a priority for him to make sure that children have access to those special school places. I can confirm that, following agreement by the school to the brief of accommodation in March, my Department is preparing the brief formulation report for the 14 special educational classrooms and ancillary accommodation. Once that is complete, my Department will consult the school to ensure we have agreement. I also confirm that an official from the Department will visit Scoil Aonghusa, Cashel, in the coming days to discuss progression of the project and to ensure it progresses as quickly as possible.”
“It is about ensuring that we can match that. Having sanctioned the classrooms, the real focus of the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, and I is on working intensively with the NCSE. We are engaging with the schools and patrons on their enrolment policies and how we match the two. Where we have identified needs, schools have been sanctioned and enrolments are taking place, it is about ensuring all of it matches up so that, come September and well before that - in the next few weeks - people know where they are going, what supports they have and that we are already planning for next year, which we are.”
“The significant investment that has gone into special education in recent years has been with the sole purpose of making sure children have places and that when they are in school, whether it is in special schools, special education classrooms or mainstream classes, they have access to the support that is appropriate to them. That is why we have more than 23,000 SNAs and thousands of new special education teachers and why over 20,500 young people are being supported in special education classrooms separate to those in mainstream. It is really important to me that we are providing more places than are needed. That is what we have been focused on for this September. When I say that we have sanctioned 3,900 places, we have done so knowing that there are just under 3,300 young people who have a need.”
“We all agree that our objective, working closely with the HSE and individual hospitals, is to make sure that hospitals have the equipment they need and that patients can access services in their communities as quickly as possible. I will raise the matter with the Minister directly.”
“If I mentioned other counties, we could be here all day. I acknowledge the importance of the large-scale infrastructure grant and the contribution it has made to sport across our country. There is a very clear commitment in the programme for Government to make sure we continue to invest in smaller scale projects via the sports capital grant. Obviously, any decision on a larger scale would have to be agreed between the Minister for sport and the Minister for public expenditure at budget time. Of course, we all want to see continued investment in those larger projects, particularly where different groups and organisations can come together and use the same facility. That is something we have been promoting over the years.”
“As I was not able to attend the Chamber on Tuesday, I wish to offer my deepest condolences to the family of Garda Kevin Flatley on the very tragic incident that occurred at the weekend. While we are talking about those who keep us safe and support us, I want to acknowledge his passing.”
“Once again, I acknowledge the fundamental work that our paramedics play in keeping people safe. For so many people, they are the first point of contact. They can stabilise people and make sure they get to hospital on time. I acknowledge their role and work in our healthcare system. I do not have the details of the particular case the Deputy mentioned, but I can ask the Minister to look at it and assess any changes we are making to the overall structures. Such changes are designed to try to benefit people in communities and make sure we have the necessary funding and the best services in place. Above all, we want to ensure that people can get access to an ambulance service or a paramedic as quickly as possible. I will bring the case the Deputy raised and the changes directly to the attention of the Minister.”
“However, it is also important that teachers, their peers and younger children in classrooms and their parents will benefit from them as well. This plan is being development. It is very much my intention that it will start in special schools and that it will be rolled out to the special education classrooms in mainstream settings in which many students with additional educational needs are being educated as quickly as possible in order that they can benefit from the therapies in question.”
“I look forward to attending the opening of Harold's Cross school and, I hope, of many others in the Deputy’s constituency as we work to provide education for our young people. It is really important that we have therapies in our schools. Children spend so much of their time in school, it is important that they have access to therapies while there. The Government's very clear commitment is that this will be rolled out. Progress has been made to date. The work that is being done at the moment now will initially focus on our special schools and make sure that those with the greatest level of need can access therapists. I am very clear that this has to be rolled out to our special classrooms as part of our overall mainstream education system. It is important that we can provide these services to those who need them when they need them.”
“We need to be open to anything we can do to support those who have addiction issues but also to prevent young children from going down that path. As the Deputy rightly mentioned, the new Gambling Regulatory Authority was introduced following significant work by our colleague the Minister, Deputy James Browne. It is important that the authority should be open to looking at all forms of gambling, in particular those the Deputy mentioned. I will bring the matter to the attention of the Minister for Justice.”
“I will ask the Minister to come back to the Deputy directly on this. I do not have a clear answer, but I certainly think we are all keen to build on the progress that has been made. Obviously, this would be part of that.”
“Those projects relate to Sapling Special School, Stepping Stones and the school in Craddockstown. The most important thing we can do now is make sure that where a need is identified, we plan for it at the earliest stage possible and look not just at the next year but also the years ahead. I will work with the Deputy to ensure we identify that need and plan accordingly.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. He and I live in commuter towns. The populations in such towns have grown significantly in recent years. What is most important is that the services respond to those increases in population and that we forward plan insofar as is possible. In recent years, particularly this year, 15 new special classes have been sanctioned for County Kildare. This will add to the 131 classes that are already in place and that support about 760 children. The new classes will provide capacity for 90 students in both primary and post-primary. In addition, there are six special schools that support 360 children. As the Deputy has mentioned previously, there are three building projects that are progressing. These will provide extra school capacity within the areas in question.”
“I join with the Deputy in commending the members of our fire service, An Garda Síochána and all of our emergency services on the fantastic work they do in protecting us and keeping us safe. A huge amount of work happened under the previous Government. That has continued into the term of this Government. The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage has engaged with the fire service, but I am not aware whether the meeting the Deputy mentioned has taken place. I will relay his concerns to the Minister and ask him to come back to the Deputy directly.”
“We all acknowledge the importance of credit unions in our towns and villages, for many reasons. While I am not aware of the particular cases Deputy Lawless mentioned, I can certainly raise the matter directly with the relevant Minister.”
“Parents want their children to have assessments of need, but we need to make sure they are getting the services at the end of the day. That is where the focus needs to be. For my part, it is making sure that children get access to the places in schools to which they are entitled. A huge amount of work has been done in that regard. We must also ensure that when they are in school, they are getting access to therapies. I have replied to Cara and said I am very open to meeting with her. I hope to do so in the coming days. We will certainly meet.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. I acknowledge the work of Cara Darmody in highlighting the very important issues he mentioned. Supporting people, particularly children with disabilities, is an absolute priority for this Government. A total of €3.2 billion was allocated for disability services in the budget. Almost one third my Department's budget is focused on supporting children with additional needs. We know there is more work to do. On assessments of need, the Minister of State, Deputy Hildegarde Naughton, is working with the Minister, Deputy Norma Foley, to make sure that any changes that need to be made to the overall structure are made in order that we can address the challenges and the backlog and that, most importantly, children get access to the services.”
“I have tried to engage with them on everything they have sought and make sure that we provide the necessary resources and supports. Teachers really want this to work.”
“On the measures the Deputy mentioned, I asked the unions to engage with me intensively on the issues that are of concern to them, the questions they had and, most importantly, the asks they had to help us make sure that this is a success. We all want it to be a success. The document that has been agreed deals with the asks from the unions. These are issues focusing on how we can implement more in our science labs and provide greater funding, how we can make sure that teachers have greater sight of the work they have to do in the years ahead and how to provide greater training. Many other issues are also addressed. These are all issues I have engaged intensively with the unions on. It is now a matter for them as to whether they accept what is proposed.”
“Let me assure the Deputy that this is not being rushed. This issue has been discussed for ten years. It was agreed in 2023 that the first tranche would start in 2025. It is important that this proceeds. It will benefit our students and that is why we are doing it. Teachers agree with it, unions agree with it and students, who have come out very clearly in support of what is proposed, agree with it. Why is that the case? It is because it does not just focus on one day after the end of two years of study. If something goes wrong on that day, there is nowhere else to turn except to repeat the following year. What is proposed will be that we will assess different skills, expertise, abilities and capacities within our younger population and prepare them better for life.”
“This is why we are putting in place permanent measures. We will have free schoolbooks for 1 million children this year. That is a saving for families. We have hot school meals for all primary schools, which, again, is a saving for families. Social welfare payments have increased year on year. We are providing a 9% permanent reduction in VAT for businesses. We know the knock-on effect this has for people who are out socialising. In circumstances where someone has lost their job, the jobseeker's pay-related benefit that has been introduced reflects more what their wages would have been. We have had more permanent changes, particularly when you focus on the huge amount of investment that is going into retrofitting homes and supporting those who are most at risk. There is no point continuing to provide one-off measures.”
“As a result of the actions of this Government, and because we have not spent every single penny we have, it has meant that over the years when we have had significant challenges - be it Covid-19 or the war in Ukraine and the implications these have had in terms of the cost of living - we have had money to give back to people. In last year's budget alone, there were €2.2 billion worth of one-off measures. What people are saying very clearly is that they want longer term measures. They want to make sure that the overall costs are permanently reduced for them. That is where our focus needs to be. We have to use the money we have because of the surplus and the fact that we focused on our economy, making sure we have enterprise here that can create the tax base that creates this funding to be spent by everybody.”
“It is a common-sense approach, making sure that when we have people on the ground, the resources are there to be able to unlock these challenges and that we work with them, making sure they are able to do this and supporting them and, above all, that we support the opening up of new homes for people in our communities.”
“This Government has made it very clear that of the significant increase in funding for the NPD review a huge proportion of that will be targeted at Uisce Éireann and infrastructure overall - how we open up our roads and water network and make sure we are not just investing in clean water but are making sure new infrastructure is there to ensure we have new homes being developed in every part of the country. We also have our new national planning framework which has gone through the Houses. That makes it very clear that this is not just about development in built up areas and in urban areas. This is about making sure we have balanced regional development, making sure our rural towns and communities benefit from it. I know the Department is very open to looking at proposal the Deputy outlined.”
“What is absolutely key is delivery and that we look at problems with fresh eyes and in a new way and make sure those who are responsible and able to deliver are very much part of the solution. That is why Uisce Éireann will be part of the various bodies I mentioned - the new infrastructure office established in the Department of public expenditure and the new housing delivery office. It is really important we are very committed in terms of financial assistance.”
“In a small number of situations, where there is a need for infrastructure to be put in place immediately in smaller developments, we could work with local private providers, making sure the standards were adhered to and were at a particular level similar to that of Irish Water. That is so that this work could happen immediately and we could unlock any of the barriers re preventing these smaller rural towns, villages or developments from providing homes for our young people, families and those who need them most. I commend the Deputy on putting forward what I think is a really workable solution and something I know the Department is very open to.”