Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 January 2009
1585 Deputy Emmet Stagg asked the Minister for Education and Science the changes, following budget 2009, to the staffing levels of a school (details supplied) in County Kildare; the reduction in the grants to the school for 2008-09 regarding the funding level in 2007-08; the educational schemes for which support has been cut for this school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1891/09]
View answer1586 Deputy Emmet Stagg asked the Minister for Education and Science the changes, following budget 2009, to the staffing levels of a school (details supplied) in County Kildare; the reduction in the grants to the school for 2008-09 regarding the funding level in 2007-08; the educational schemes for which support has been cut for this school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1892/09]
View answer1587 Deputy Emmet Stagg asked the Minister for Education and Science the changes, following budget 2009, to the staffing levels of a school (details supplied) in County Kildare; the reduction in the grants to the school for 2008-09 regarding the funding level in 2007-08; the educational schemes for which support has been cut for this school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1893/09]
View answer1588 Deputy Emmet Stagg asked the Minister for Education and Science the changes, following budget 2009, to the staffing levels of a school (details supplied) in County Kildare; the reduction in the grants to the school for 2008-09 regarding the funding level in 2007-08; the educational schemes for which support has been cut for this school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1894/09]
View answer1589 Deputy Emmet Stagg asked the Minister for Education and Science the changes, following budget 2009, to the staffing levels of a school (details supplied) in County Kildare; the reduction in the grants to the school for 2008-09 regarding the funding level in 2007-08; the educational schemes for which support has been cut for this school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1895/09]
View answer1590 Deputy Emmet Stagg asked the Minister for Education and Science the changes, following budget 2009, to the staffing levels of a school (details supplied) in County Kildare; the reduction in the grants to the school for 2008-09 regarding the funding level in 2007-08; the educational schemes for which support has been cut for this school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1896/09]
View answer1591 Deputy Emmet Stagg asked the Minister for Education and Science the changes, following budget 2009, to the staffing levels of a school (details supplied) in County Kildare; the reduction in the grants to the school for the 2008-09 year regarding the funding level in 2007-08; the educational schemes for which support has been cut for this school; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1904/09]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 1585 to 1591, inclusive, together.
The 2009 Budget required difficult choices to be made across all areas of public expenditure. These decisions were made to control public expenditure and to ensure sustainability in the long run. In this respect Education while protected to a much greater extent than most other areas of public expenditure could not be totally spared. The various impacts at school level in relation to both staffing and grant levels were included in the Budget day announcements. Even with the budget measures in place there will still be a significantly increased borrowing requirement in 2009.
My Department will be advising individual schools in the normal way in relation to their staffing allocations. The staffing schedule will be published and it is a transparent and clear way of ensuring that schools are treated consistently and fairly and know where they stand. The preparatory work for the staffing allocations has commenced with the processing of enrolment data that have been received from schools. The staffing allocation processes including notification to schools will commence shortly. The allocation process includes appellate mechanisms under which schools can appeal against the allocation due to them under the staffing schedules. The final allocation to a school is also a function of the operation of the redeployment panels which provide for the retention of a teacher in an existing school if a new post is not available within the agreed terms of the scheme.
I have no difficulty in setting out for this House or for the public generally the overall net impact of the budget measures on aggregate grant levels or teacher numbers in schools for the 2009/10 school year. I can do this when the allocation process has been completed.
At this time the priority for my Department within the resources available to it is to carry out those processes in a timely manner. Diverting resources in order to create staffing or funding profiles for the school referred to by the Deputy, could not be justified and would in fact impede the process.
