asked the Minister for Education if he will make a statement on the situation in the Dublin Dental Hospital arising from the industrial dispute there; and if he will furnish details of the efforts he has made to restore normality to the hospital and to the training courses which have been affected.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Dublin Dental Hospital.
29.
I would refer the Deputy to the statements which I made in the House on 17 November and 15 December 1977. As already indicated, I do not have a function in the matter. I have, however, been keeping in close touch with the situation. The case has been referred to the Labour Court for a full hearing and the senior instructor dental technicians have resumed tuition with effect from 9 January 1978.
The Minister undertook to take an active interest in resolving this unfortunate dispute. Will he now give an assurance that no students will be held back in their studies because of it?
The Deputy will accept that, when the matter is before the Labour Court, it would be both unwise and undesirable for the Minister to take an interest before the dispute is resolved by that court.
The question I asked was if the Minister would give a further undertaking that he would ensure students would not be held back in their studies because of the dispute?
Naturally the Minister is always concerned for the interests of the students in the college or in any other seat of learning.
What steps is the Minister taking to ensure that the students' studies will not be upset because of the dispute? Will the Minister answer that question?
All steps appropriate to the delicate position that obtains in the college at the moment.
Would the Minister specify the steps?
I am calling the next question, Question No. 30.
Could we have some practical answers to practical supplementary questions?