Is it not the case that the Minister made this announcement and issued the press statement in early July without having thought out the implications of this proposal? It was quite clear from a meeting that I had with senior officials in the Minister's Department in the middle of July that many aspects of the proposal had not been thought through and that there are, in fact, very negative implications for many schools throughout the country with regard to the changeover.
I asked the Minister the reason for the delay. After his statement in July he issued one on 17 September promising clarity within two weeks. It is now three weeks since that date and we still have not received any clarification.
Will the Minister explain how he proposes to disperse the £32 million in the current year? Specifically, will he state if, in the case of secretar ies and caretakers employed under the 1978-1979 scheme, they will receive additional funding, or will they be excluded? Will he explain what will happen in the case of schools that have several CE scheme participants? With regard to those schools, largely disadvantaged, with a full complement of 15 CE scheme participants doing vital work, including maintenance, decoration, classroom assistance, meal preparation etc., what are the implications of the plans? They stand to be further disadvantaged by the Minister's proposal. Will he explain this to schools now? It is only fair that school principals should be clear in this the second month of the school year where they stand for the rest of the year. It is only fair to those on community employment schemes that there is clarity about this. Will the Minister answer those questions?