asked the Minister for Education if he will sanction school transport to Navan national school, County Meath from the Liscarton/ Tankardstown area, in view of the fact that a list of children eligible for transport was submitted to his Department last winter.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Meath School Transport.
38.
Free transport on a convenient public scheduled service to and from Navan has been sanctioned for the eligible children residing in these localities. It is understood that CIE have recently issued the tickets to school authorities.
What does the Parliamentary Secretary mean by "recently"? Is it this week or last week?
The decision was taken on 25th April. The Department advised CIE to grant free transport on a scheduled service to a number of children. There was some doubt regarding the precise number eligible for the concession. Several have been added to the list recently but the basic decision was taken in April.
Can the Parliamentary Secretary state why CIE were so long in issuing tickets if the decision was sanctioned last April?
I cannot say precisely. I have not got the information to enable me to say definitely the date on which the tickets were issued and, therefore, I cannot say if they were issued unduly late.
Will the Parliamentary Secretary find out?
I can tell the Parliamentary secretary they were not issued last week.
I can assure the Deputy he is not the only person who is interested in ensuring that school transport works efficiently in County Meath.